Ethnozoological practices in Rodrigues island of the Mascarene archipelago.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Rodrigues, is an autonomous island that forms part of the Republic of Mauritius. It is a component of the Mascarene archipelago alongside Mauritius and Reunion island. Despite their relative geographical proximity, each island has its own unique biodiversity and indigenous knowledge. Nonetheless, there is no documentation of the use of animal-based remedies (ABR) in Rodrigues. This study was therefore designed to gather and compare primary traditional knowledge on the different ABR used by Rodriguans. AIM OF THE STUDY: To collect, analyse, document, compare, and disseminate the use of ABR against common human ailments in Rodrigues island. METHODS: Data was collected following interviews from key informants (n = 150). Primary data collected in the present study was compared with those reported from the nearest island, Mauritius. Three quantitative indices including (i) the frequency of citation, (ii) the similarity ratio and the percentage of shared uses among the two islands and (iii) new uses and percentage of new uses recorded in Rodrigues for each animal species mentioned were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 32 animal species belonging to 13 taxonomic groups among which 55% were vertebrates and 45% invertebrates were reported to treat 38 different ailment conditions. Altogether, 73 distinct medicinal preparations employing 22 different animal parts and by-products were concocted from the different animal species reported. Most used animal parts were meat (21%) followed by the whole body (14%). The preparations were either administered orally (78%) or topically (22%). Interestingly, resources such as the Rodriguan bat (Pteropus rodricensis) and honey are unique to the island and have never been studied before. Pteropus rodricensis is an endangered species while Carcharodon carcharias is a vulnerable one. The shared medicinal uses of the species among the 2 islands ranged from 0 to 50% with the most similar uses (50%) being for Columba livia and Donax Spp. respectively. The proportion of new uses of animal species recorded in Rodrigues was higher (NUR ≥ 30%) for Panulirus penicillatus, Ovis aries, Gallus gallus domesticus, Scutigera coleoptrata, Apis mellifera, Bos taurus and Capra aegagrus hircus. CONCLUSION: Rodriguans were found to possess valuable knowledge on a plethora of ABR. It is believed that the present documentation will serve to record and present this vanishing knowledge to the scientific community before it is further eroded from the island. Given the dearth of primary published information on zootherapeutic practices in Rodrigues, this study opens new avenues for biomedicine development in an attempt to develop alternative therapies or complement existing ones.

Ethnopharmacological appraisal of culturally important medicinal plants and polyherbal formulas used against communicable diseases in Rodrigues Island.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The tropical island of Rodrigues is one of three islands that constitute the Mascarene archipelago in the Indian Ocean. Currently considered as a biodiversity hotspot, the island has also a resilient history in the use of traditional medicine. However, there has been no ethnopharmacological study to document quantitatively such traditional practice against communicable diseases (CD), which currently accounts for 6.61% annual death and 30.7% attendances in public hospitals. The aim of the present study was to collect, analyse, and document traditionally used medicinal plants (MP) and polyherbal formulas from key informants and traditional medicine practitioners (TMP) in Rodrigues to treat and/or manage common CD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data was collected via face-to-face interviews with MP users (n=113) and TMP (n=9) from 17 key sites. Seven quantitative ethnopharmacological indices, namely family use value (FUV), use value (UV), informant agreement ratio (IAR), relative frequency of citation (RFC), fidelity level (FL), relative importance (RI), and ethnobotanicity index (EI) were calculated. RESULTS: Ninety-seven plants belonging to 49 families were recorded to be in common use as monotherapy (80 plants) and/or as part of polyherbal preparation (23 plants) for the treatment and/or management of 16 different CD. Thirteen MPs were found to have a maximum FL of 100% for CD. The highest IAR (0.98) was observed for diseases of the eye and adnexa and skin and subcutaneous tissue. The highest FUV was for Arecaceae. Ayapana triplinervis (Vahl) R.M. king et H.Rob. scored the highest UV (UV=2.72). Seven endemic medicinal plants have been recorded to be employed in cultural rituals for the management of common CDs, whereas 14 polyherbal preparations were used to treat and/or manage 6 different types of CDs. Side effects were also reported following use of some these medicinal plants. CONCLUSION: Given the dearth of updated information on traditional medicine from Rodrigues, this work has provided an opportunity to establish valuable primary information on the different MP used by the local people. Further research is needed to probe into the possible active constituents that could open new perspectives for further pharmacological research and hence be the basis of an evidence-based investigation to discover new drugs.

Ethnopharmacological analysis of medicinal plants used against non-communicable diseases in Rodrigues Island, Indian Ocean.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Rodrigues is an autonomous outer island that form part of the Republic of Mauritius and one of three islands that constitute the Mascarene archipelago in the Indian Ocean. Though herbal medicine is in common use in Rodrigues, there has been no ethnopharmacological study to document quantitatively such traditional practise particularly against non-communicable diseases (NCD) which is currently a growing major health issue on the island. The aim of the present study was to collect, analyse and document traditionally used medicinal plants (MP) from key informants and traditional medicine practitioners (TMP) in the tropical island of Rodrigues to treat and/or manage common NCD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data was collected via face-to-face interviews with MP users (n=113) and TMP (n=9). Seven quantitative ethnopharmacological indices, namely family use value (FUV), use value (UV), informant agreement ratio (IAR), relative frequency of citation (RFC), fidelity level (FL), relative importance (RI) and ethnobotanicity index (EI) were calculated. RESULTS: Hundred and three plants belonging to 55 families were recorded for the treatment and/or management of 27 different NCD. Three of the MP (Terminalia bentzoë (L.) L.F, Sarcostemma cf. adontolepis Balf.f. and Clerodendrum laciniatum Balf.f.) recorded are endemic to Rodrigues and 2 (Carissa xylopicron Thouars., Phyllanthus casticum Willemet f.) endemic to the Mascarene Islands. The most solicited MP family was Asteraceae with a total of 8 species. Citrus aurantifolia (Christm.) Swingle scored the highest RFC (RFC=1.02) value. Ten plants were found to score 100% FL and the highest IAR (0.98) was observed for the disease category of certain conditions originating in the perinatal period. Arecaceae scored the highest FUV value and Ayapana triplinervis (Vahl) R.M. King et H.Rob highest UV (UV= 2.72). CONCLUSION: Given the dearth of updated information on traditional medicine of Rodrigues, this study can provide an opportunity to establish valuable primary information on the different MP used by the local people and hence can open new perspectives for further pharmacological research.