title: Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants by population of Valley of Juruena Region, Legal Amazon, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The use of medicinal plants for treatment, cure and prevention of diseases has been described by many people since time immemorial. Because of this use, commercial and scientific interests have emerged, making it necessary to realize ethnobotanical surveys of medicinal plants species, which is important for subsequent chemical and pharmacological bioprospections.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed at surveying, identifying, cataloging and documenting the medicinal plants species used in the Valley of Juruena, Northwestern Mato Grosso, Legal Amazon Brazil for the treatment of various human diseases, as well as assessed the species of interest for bioprospecting potential.
  
  
  METHODS
  Informants were interviewed using semi-structured form to capture information on socio-demographic and ethnopharmacological data of medicinal plants such as vernacular name, uses, geographic origin, habit, form of preparation and part used. Results were analyzed using descriptive and quantitative means: indices of use-report (Ur) and informant consensus factor (ICF), for the selection of plant species with therapeutic potential.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three hundred and thirty two (332) plants species belonging to 90 families were reported for medicinal purposes and totaling 3973 use-reports were reported by 365 (92.9%) of the people interviewed. Asteraceae (32.2%), Fabaceae (26.7%) and Lamiaceae (24.4%) families were the most represented, with majority being species native (64.45%) to Brazil. Leaves (64.5%) were the part of the plant most used and infusion (45.7%) was the most utilized form. Gastrointestinal disorders followed by respiratory complaints topped the list of use-reports. The native or naturalized plants with the highest use reports in the order of decreasing absolute frequency per each emic-category are Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapfc (104), Mentha pulegium L. (94), Arrabidaea chica (Humb. & Bonpl.) B. Verl. (97), Alternanthera brasiliana (L.) Kuntze (71), Baccharis crispa Spreng (57), Phyllanthus niruri L. (48), Gossypium barbadense L. (44), Solidago microglossa DC. (40) and Bauhinia forficata L. (20). And the most cited exotics are: Chenopodium ambrosioides L. (151), Aloe vera (L.) Burm. f., (89) and Rosmarinus officinalis L. (72). In some cases, high ICF values were found, which reflects high degree of homogeneity of consensus among informants in this region on medicinal plants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The population of Valle of Juruena makes use of a wide array of medicinal plants distributed in all use categories with predominance of those use in the treatments of gastrointestinal and respiratory ailments. The therapeutic potential of some of the species of medicinal importance extensively utilized by the population of the region have been scientifically validated, and are therefore promising prototype of new drugs. However, there are some of these species whose ethnomedicinal uses are yet to be scientifically verified and thus constitute an unexplored terrain for future biological/pharmacological studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Isanete Geraldini Costa
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Bieski
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leonti
authors.affiliation: Department Biology, University of Ottawa, 30 Marie Curie, Ottawa, Canada.
authors.forename: John Thor
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Arnason
authors.affiliation: Department Biology, University of Ottawa, 30 Marie Curie, Ottawa, Canada.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ferrier
authors.affiliation: Department Biology, University of Ottawa, 30 Marie Curie, Ottawa, Canada.
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rapinski
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ivana Maria Povoa
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Violante
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sikiru Olaitan
authors.initials: SO
authors.lastname: Balogun
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: João Filipe Costa Alves
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rita de Cassia Feguri
authors.initials: Rde C
authors.lastname: Figueiredo
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biological and Agrarian Sciences, University of Mato Grosso State (UNEMAT), Campus Universitário de Alta Floresta, UNEMAT, 208, km 146, Jardim Tropical, Alta Floresta, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Célia Regina Araújo Soares
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biological and Agrarian Sciences, University of Mato Grosso State (UNEMAT), Campus Universitário de Alta Floresta, UNEMAT, 208, km 146, Jardim Tropical, Alta Floresta, MT, Brazil.
authors.forename: Dennis Rodrigues
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Rondon Museum, Federal University of Mato Grosso, Brazil.
authors.forename: Aloir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pacini
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Laboratory of Applied and Theoretical Ethnobiology (LEA), Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ulysses Paulino
authors.initials: UP
authors.lastname: Albuquerque
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Sciences in Health, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), 78060-900 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil. Electronic address: taba@terra.com.br.
authors.forename: Domingos Tabajara de Oliveira
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Martins
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil; D019448:Ethnobotany; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008519:Medicine, Traditional; D008875:Middle Aged; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Amazon rain forest; Emic use; Ethnobotanical; Informant consensus factor; Use-reports