Background: Plant-based remedies have been used since antiquity to treat menstrual-related diseases (MD). From the late nineteenth to the early to mid-twentieth century, Italian folk remedies to treat \"women\'s diseases\" were documented in a vast corpus of literature sources. Aim: The purpose of this paper is to bring to light the plant-based treatments utilized by Italian folk medicine to heal clinical manifestations of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea and menstrual disorders in an attempt to discuss these remedies from a modern pharmacological point of view. Moreover, we compare the medical applications described by Hippocrates with those utilized by Italian folk medicine to check if they result from a sort of continuity of use by over two thousand years. Results: Out of the 54 plants employed in Italian folk medicine, 25 (46.3%) were already documented in the pharmacopoeia of the Corpus Hippocraticum for treating MD. Subsequently, a detailed search of scientific data banks such as Medline and Scopus was undertaken to uncover recent results concerning bioactivities of the plant extracts to treat MD. About 26% of the plants used by Italian folk medicine, nowadays, have undergone human trials to assess their actual efficacy. At the same time, about 41% of these herbal remedies come back to in different countries. Conclusions: Active principles extracted from plants used by Italian folk healers could be a promising source of knowledge and represent strength candidates for future drug discovery for the management of MD.

BACKGROUND: Echinophora tenuifolia L. subsp. sibthorpiana is a perennial, aromatic plant used in traditional folk medicine and cuisine of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. However, scholars have not fully studied the pharmacological potential of the herb, and the scientific data on this plant species are limited. This study aimed to evaluate the chemical composition of the essential oil (EO) obtained from the aerial parts of E. tenuifolia subsp. sibthorpiana growing wild in Bulgaria and to perform histochemical analysis.
METHODS: A microscopic histochemical analysis and gas chromatography with mass spectrometry were performed.
RESULTS: The histochemical analysis confirmed the presence of terpenes in the stem and leaf of E. tenuifolia subsp. sibthorpiana. The phenylpropanoid methyleugenol was identified as the main compound in the EO, representing 48.13% of the total oil composition. There were also found considerable amounts of monoterpene hydrocarbons, representing 41.68% of the total EO. Alpha-phellandrene, o-cymene, and β-phellandrene were the most abundant monoterpene hydrocarbons.
CONCLUSIONS: This is the first histochemical analysis performed on E. tenuifolia subsp. sibthorpiana. This is the first report of the EO composition from Bulgarian E. tenuifolia subsp. sibthorpiana, and our results indicate some future possibilities for evaluating of the biological activity of the EO of E. tenuifolia subsp. sibthorpiana and highlight the potential future use of the EO of this plant species. E. tenuifolia L. subsp. sibthorpiana EO possesses a good potential for use as a biopesticide and repellent an environmentally friendly alternative of synthetic pesticides.

UNASSIGNED: Ethiopia has a diverse set of floral and faunal resources that are used for primary health care in traditional or indigenous medicine. However, because they are passed down orally from one generation to the next, this indigenous medical practice is being ignored and is continuing to disappear. As a result, the goal of this ethnozoological study was to assess and document traditional healers\' and indigenous people\'s knowledge in use of animal parts or products for medical purposes in the Diguna Fango District of Wolaita, Ethiopia.
UNASSIGNED: From March 2021 to June 2021, a field survey was conducted using personal interviews, semistructured questionnaires, and open group discussions utilizing a cross-sectional study approach. Totally, two hundred informants (125 men and 75 women) were provided information on the medicinal uses of various animals. Using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, the collected ethnozoological data were analyzed. The informant consensus factor, use value, and degree of fidelity were all determined.
UNASSIGNED: More than 50 different human ailments were treated using 39 different animal parts or products. Mammals had the highest use rate (N = 26, 66.67%). In the category of treating endocrine, metabolic, and nutritional diseases, Hystrix cristata had a high-fidelity level (FL = 95%). The highest use value (a maximum of 1.0) was for Bos taurus. The disease categories with the highest informant consensus factor (ICF) values were human immune deficiency disease, reproductive health, and genito-urinary ailment categories (ICF = 1.00). Wild animals (74%) outnumbered domestic animals (26%). The most common administration route (50%) was oral, and raw remedies had the highest use reports (58.9%).
UNASSIGNED: The findings revealed that the study area contains a wealth of ethnozoological knowledge that could be useful in the formulation of novel drugs. The findings of the study should therefore be put to use in prospective ethnozoological, ethnopharmacological, and conservation-related studies in the region.

BACKGROUND: Plantago major L. is used by local people to improve various wounds and lesions such as pressure ulcer. In this study, the therapeutic effects of P. major topical formulation on the stage 1 pressure ulcer in patients have been investigated.
METHODS: This randomized triple blind clinical trial study was performed on 130 patients. During the 14 days of study, each of the test and control groups was checked according to check list. Also the topical formulation was standardized by HPLC based on the amount of quercetin.
RESULTS: The findings of this study indicated a significant difference in resolution of the damage between the test and control groups. Topical formulation was standardized by HPLC based on the quercetin (1.88 mg/100g) and no side effects associated with this topical formulation was found.
CONCLUSIONS: The results confirmed the traditional use of P. major in resolution of the damage. CLINICAL TRIAL ID: (IRCT201609209014N117).

There are several reports indicating that the roots of the Carlina acaulis L. used to be commonly applied as a treatment measure in skin diseases and as an antiparasitic agent, starting from antiquity to the 19th century; however, nowadays, it has lost its importance. Currently, numerous studies are being conducted assessing the possibility of reintroducing C. acaulis-derived extracts to phytotherapy. Determining the safety profile of the main constituents of the plant material is crucial for achieving this goal. Here, we aimed to determine the toxicity profile of carlina oxide, one of the most abundant components of the C. acaulis root extract. We obtained the carlina oxide by distillation of C. acaulis roots in the Deryng apparatus. The purity of the standard was evaluated using GC-MS, and the identity was confirmed by IR, Raman, and NMR spectroscopy. In vitro cytotoxicity was assessed using a panel of human cell lines of skin origin, including BJ normal fibroblasts and UACC-903, UACC-647, and C32 melanoma cells. This was accompanied by an in vivo zebrafish acute toxicity test (ZFET). In vitro studies showed a toxic effect of carlina oxide, as demonstrated by an induction of apoptosis and necrosis in both normal and melanoma cells. Decreased expression of AKT kinase and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) was noted in the UACC-647 melanoma cell line. It was also observed that carlina oxide modified the expression of programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in tested cell lines. Carlina oxide exhibited high in vivo toxicity, with LC50 = 10.13 µg/mL upon the 96 h of exposure in the ZFET test. Here, we demonstrate that carlina oxide displays toxic effects to cells in culture and to living organisms. The data indicate that C. acaulis-based extracts considered for therapeutic use should be completely deprived of carlina oxide.

BACKGROUND: Animals from various taxonomic groups are commonly used in folk medicine, and their selection seems to be directly linked to their availability and accessibility. In the present study, we analyzed the use of animals as a source of folk medicines in a community in northeastern Brazil with access to aquatic and terrestrial animals. We hypothesize that the medicinal fauna is well represented by species of both habitat types.
METHODS: For the collection of information, semi-structured questionnaires were applied to local residents.
RESULTS: We recorded the use of 22 animals used as medicinal resources in the community, distributed among eight taxonomic categories, which are used to treat 38 types of diseases. Of the therapeutic animals, 14 species are terrestrial and 8 species can be considered aquatic occurring in marine or estuarine habitats.
CONCLUSIONS: Our data confirm the tendency of human communities to use affordable medicinal animals in local ecosystems. We also found that medicinal use represents a strategy of optimizing the use of resources and is related to the economic, historical, social, cultural, and ecological contexts in which the community is inserted.

Lagochilus species are mainly distributed in Central Asia and widely used in folk medicine as a sedative and haemostatic. The present investigation reports on the extraction by hydrodistillation and the chemical composition of three Lagochilus species (L. gypsaceus, L. inebrians and L. setulosus) essential oils from Uzbekistan. The chemical composition of these essential oils was determined by GC-MS. The results showed that the studied essential oils are made up mainly of linalool (11.97%), β-ionone (11.75%), trans-chrysanthenyl acetate (7.15%), α-terpineol (7.40%) for L. gypsaceus; trans-chrysanthenyl acetate (9.40%), eugenol (7.01%), trans-verbenol (3.85%), bicyclo[3.1.1]hept-3-en-2-one (3.76%), pinocarvone (3.43%) for L. inebrians; and finally 2,4-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl)phenol (19.78%), bicyclo[3.1.1]hept-2-en-4-ol (5.43%), hexadecanoic acid (5.39%), limonene (5.19%), 2-hexenal (5.03%) for L. setulosus. The best antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibitory activity was observed for the essential oil of L. inebrians. However, L. setulosus essential oil exhibited the strongest inhibitory effect against amylase.

This study aimed to report three representative childhood lead poisoning cases in China from domestic products exposure and to highlight their critical implications for practice, education, and policy in prevention and treatment of childhood lead poisoning by health care providers, especially public health nurses.
Three representative childhood lead poisoning cases occurring in 2017 were collected and analyzed.
The lead exposure sources of three cases were evaluated by experts in the field and determined to be tin pots, home factories for tinfoil, and contamination of folk medicine, respectively. These cases demonstrated that the lack of lead exposure risk assessment, insufficient knowledge of potential lead exposure sources, underdeveloped policy, and regulations were areas for improvement.
The best strategies for preventing lead poisoning include an appropriate risk assessment of lead exposure, implementation of comprehensive parental health education, conduction of further research by public health providers, and the application of policy strategies by the government. It was determined that public health nurses are at the frontline of prevention of lead poisoning in children.

BACKGROUND: Ethnobotanical studies on folk medicinal plants used by Mongol herdsmen have been conducted in some areas of Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, China. However, ethnobotanical findings are preliminary and not comprehensive. Mongolian medicinal botanical knowledge has been gradually decreasing. One of the most important reasons is that Mongolian traditional medicine has become an alternative medicine in pasturing areas of China. Collection and analysis of Mongolian folk medicinal botanical knowledge have become extremely important.
METHODS: From 2008 to 2014, the authors have been to Bairin Right Banner seven times, and from 2016 to 2018, have been to Bairin Left Banner five times. Fieldwork was carried out in 18 villages, and 136 local Mongol herdsmen were interviewed. The methods of free-listing and open-ended questionnaires were used in field survey. Ethnobotanical interview and voucher specimen collections were organized in two ways: local plant specimens were collected beforehand and then interviews were organized; local Mongol herdsmen were invited to the field and were interviewed while collecting voucher specimens. Mongolian was used as the working language, and findings were recorded in Mongolian. Scientific names of plants were confirmed through collection and identification of voucher specimens.
RESULTS: Among the collected medicinal wild plants, 40 species are used by local Mongol herdsmen. Twenty-six species of folk medicinal plants have been recorded in the literature in the field of Traditional Mongolian Medicine (TMM), and 38 species have been recorded in the field of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The parts that have medicinal value include roots, whole plant, aerial parts, leaves, fruit, seeds, branches, bulb skin, and stem. For medicinal efficacy, among the collected medicinal plants, 8 species should be fresh. Thirteen species must be dried, and another 16 species can be fresh or dried. After a simple process of sorting and washing, local people soak, pulverize, and mash the medicinal plants. Nineteen species were externally used medicine, and 17 species were internally used medicine (taken orally). Generally, only one or two functions of folk medicine and indications associated with it were provided by local Mongol herdsmen. However, the functions of TMM and TCM and their indications show diversity and have systematic characteristics. More functions of TMM and TCM and their indications have been recorded. In the paper, we also discuss the correspondence between one or two functions of folk medicine with one or two functions of TMM and TCM.
CONCLUSIONS: Not many medicinal wild plant species are used by Mongol herdsmen in the Bairin Area. Fourteen species have not been recorded in the literature of TMM, and 2 species have not been recorded in the literature of TCM. Folk knowledge can provide a certain reference value for searching for new medicinal wild plant species. On the whole, fresh plants are commonly used by Mongol herdsmen in the Bairin Area; boiling is the most common preparation method. Most of the crude materials can be used alone. The externally used medicinal parts are more common than those taken orally. A folk medicinal bath may be regarded as a compound drug mixed with two to five species of plant materials. The local Mongol herdsmen fully understand the function of folk medicines and their indications.

When people in Northern Norway get ill, they often use traditional medicine. The global aim of this study was to examine the extended family networks\' function and responsibility in cases of illness in the family, in two Northern Norwegian communities with a population of mixed ethnicity.
Semi-structured individual interviews with 13 participants and 4 focus group interviews with total 11 participants were conducted. The text data was transcribed verbatim and analysed based on the criteria for content analysis.
The participants grew up in areas where it was common to seek help from traditional healers. They were organized in networks and shared responsibility for the patient and they provided practical help and support for the family. According to the networks, health-care personnel should make room for the entire network to visit the patient in severe and life-threatening situations.
Traditional networks are an extra resource for people in these communities. The networks seem to be essential in handling and disseminating hope and manageability on an individual as well as a collective level. Health personnel working in communities with mixed ethnicity should have thorough knowledge of the mixed culture, including the importance of traditional network to the patients.