Abstract
Traditional medicine is the cornerstone that boosts scientific research to explore new therapeutic approaches. The study aimed to assess the traditional knowledge and use of medicinal plants to treat various ailments by Algerian traditional healers. Forty traditional healers were face-to-face interviewed in three different Algerian areas (West, Kabylia, and Sahara). The data collected were analyzed using quantitative indices such as fidelity level (FL) and informant consensus factor (FIC). A total of 167 species belonging to 70 families were recorded. Lamiaceae (13%), Asteraceae (13%), Apiaceae (7%), and Rosaceae and Fabaceae (5% each) were the most cited families. The survey revealed that leaves were the most used parts of the plants (29%). Furthermore, decoction (35%), raw (24%), and infusion (19%) were the common modes for the remedies’ preparation. Here, 15% of the total species were newly reported as medicinal plants. Besides, it was reported for the first time a total of 47 new therapeutic uses for 20 known plant species. Of 17 ailments categories, cancer was presented by 44 species, showing the highest FIC of 0.46. Marrubium vulgare L., Artemisia herba-alba Asso., Zingiber officinale Roscoe., and Juniperus phoenicea L. recorded the maximum fidelity value of 100%. Therefore, our study reveals strong ethnomedicinal knowledge shared by local populations living in the three regions studied. The medicinal species with a high FL could be promising candidates for identifying new bioactive molecules.
Highlights
Medicinal plants are still considered important and promising sources of drugs to treat various diseases
The present study was carried out in three important regions of Algeria: North-West, Kabylia (Center), and Sahara (South) to 1) record the medicinal species used for medicinal purposes and the local therapeutic practices of traditional healers and 2) document the species newly reported as medicinal plants and new uses
Our results indicated that M. vulgare, A. herba-alba, Z. officinale, and J. phoenicia had the absolute fidelity level (FL) value of 100% in several ailment categories (SRD, cancer, respiratory diseases, and GISD)
Summary
Medicinal plants are still considered important and promising sources of drugs to treat various diseases. Their therapeutic uses, vernacular names, modes of preparation, and routes of administration were orally transmitted to constitute a local ancestral knowledge characterizing each population or ethnic group living in a specified area. The present study was carried out in three important regions of Algeria: North-West, Kabylia (Center), and Sahara (South) to 1) record the medicinal species used for medicinal purposes and the local therapeutic practices of traditional healers and 2) document the species newly reported as medicinal plants and new uses
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