Ethnobotany of medicinal plants used by the Yao people in Gongcheng County, Guangxi, China

Abstract

Background Gongcheng Yao Autonomous County (Gongcheng) is typical for the Yao people in northeastern Guangxi, southern China. The Yao people have a long history of using medicinal plants. In this study, we used ethnobotanical methods to collect traditional knowledge regarding herbal medicines in Gongcheng. Our study provides fundamental data for developing and applying local ethnic medicines and their protection. Methods Ethnobotanical data were collected from 103 villages in nine townships from 2014 to 2018 in Gongcheng. A total of 352 informants (279 male and 73 female) were interviewed through semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, and guided field walks. All the informants were local inhabitants aged between 28 and 101 years of age, of which 40 key informants were selected based on the recommendations of knowledgeable elders and local medical institutions. The informant consensus factor (ICF) was used to evaluate the degree and importance of differences in medicinal plant species and calculated the relative frequencies of citation (RFC) for the recorded medicinal plants. Results Data from 352 local healers were collected for the study. The Guanyin and Sanjiang townships had the highest distribution of per capita healers (Pch), while the Gongcheng, Lianhua, and Ping'an townships were relatively lower. Of the 352 local healers, more than half were older than 60 years of age and therefore faced the problem of suitable successors and potential loss of traditional medicinal knowledge. There are 12 types of diseases treated by local healers in the study area, and most of the types had a high ICF value. The highest ICF (0.80) was reported for digestive system disease, followed by urinary system disease (0.78) and nervous system disease (0.77). Traumatic injury and orthopedics, digestive system, and rheumatic disease are the most common ailments. The RFC value calculated in 33 medicinal plant species (with an FC of more than 5) ranged from 0.024 to 0.056. The higher RFC values included Kadsura longipedunculata, Schefflera heptaphylla, Plantago asiatica, etc. The most commonly used medicinal method was decoction; plasters, creams, and some form of moxibustion and cupping skills were locally practiced, but only rarely. The local healers used 306 medicinal plant species (116 families and 255 genera). Herbal plants were most commonly used among these, with whole plants and roots being favored. Conclusion The Yao people are highly skilled at using medicinal plants to treat various diseases in Gongcheng. Their treatment methods are varied, convenient, and efficient. Due to the impact of urbanization and economic development, knowledge of traditional medicine is under threat, with declining numbers of local healers and a lack of suitable successors. In order to protect and inherit Yao's traditional medicinal knowledge, it is necessary to educate young healers and to protect biodiversity.

Diversity and traditional knowledge of medicinal plants used by Shui people in Southwest China

“…Most Shui traditional healers pass on their medical skills and knowledge to their sons, and in some cases, their nephews. This male progenitor transmission of traditional knowledge is a common form of inheritance throughout southwest China, such as Miao [ 40 ], Yao [ 41 ], and Dong [ 42 ]. However, this male progenitor system limits the pool of potential healers to only men directly related to the practitioner, and not others in the community, including women or unrelated individuals with an interest in health.…”

“…The results also provided information on each species, including scientific name, family, Chinese name, local name, distribution, part used, use and value, preparation method, and voucher specimen number (Table 5 ). Compared with ethnomedicinal documentation in other communities, such as Yao people in Gongcheng County [ 41 ], Li people in Wanning [ 43 ], Bulang people in Menghai County [ 44 ], Tujia and Miao people in Jianshi County [ 45 ], Dong people in Tongdao [ 46 ] and Yi people in Shilin [ 47 ], the Shui medicinal species are especially diverse (Fig. 3 ).…”

“…Disease incidence is often closely related to the local environment and climate, as well as ethnic activities and lifestyles [ 41 ]. According to the survey, Sandu had the largest number of healers who could effectively treat rheumatic disease, and this may be because Sandu is located in the Moon and the Leigong Mountains.…”

Fissistigma oldhamii (Hemsl.) Merr.: Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemistry, and Pharmacological Aspects

“…They are effective in dispelling wind and dampness and promoting blood circulation. In TCM, the plant is referred to as Gua fu mu (Chinese name) or Tie zuan or Xun gu feng (local names) [ 93 ]. In most cases, F. oldhamii is combined with other plants to make multiherbal preparations, prepared as either decoctions, patches, or tablets, as described in a number of Chinese patents ( Table 2 ).…”

Ethnobotany of the Toba Batak Ethnic Community in Samosir District, North Sumatra, Indonesia

“…The current most appropriate approach to documenting the use of plants by local communities is to use the methodology through surveys, interviews, independent exploration and participatory observation. However, one market survey method has advantages over other methods (Lu et al 2022). Van Sam (2012 states that data on medicinal plants or other uses can be extracted using market surveys.…”