Browsing by Author "Rahmatullah, Mohammed"

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A Comparative Analysis of Medicinal Plants used by Several Tribes of Chittagong Hill Tracts Region, Bangladesh to Treat Helminthic Infections
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Hossan, Md. Shahadat; Seraj, Syeda; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Miajee, Z.U.M. Emdad Ullah; Nasrin, Dilruba; Khatun, Zubaida; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Khatun, Afsana
Chittagong Hill Tracts region is largely a forested region in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh. A number of tribes are settled in this region. Helminthiasis (infestation of intestine with parasitic worms) is fairly prevalent within the tribes because of poor sanitary conditions. The tribal people visit their own traditional medicinal practitioners to treat helminthic infections, more so because modern medicinal facilities are absent within the forested areas. Tribal traditional medicinal practitioners rely on medicinal plants for treatment of helminthiasis. The objective of the present survey was to conduct a survey among the Chak, Chakma, Marma, Murong, Rakhain and Tonchonga tribal traditional medicinal practitioners to learn more about medicinal plants used by them for treatment of helminthic infections. Helminthic infections are prevalent worldwide and medicinal plants can be a potential source for discovery of more efficacious drugs. A total of 10 plant species distributed into 8 families were observed to be used by the surveyed tribes to treat helminthiasis. The number of medicinal plants used by the Chak, Chakma, Marma, Murong, Rakhain and Tonchonga tribes to treat helminthic infections were respectively, 1, 4, 1, 3, 3, and 3. Ananas comosus (L.) Merr. was used in common by the Chak, Chakma, Rakhain, and Tonchonga tribes. Cassia alata L. was used in common by the Chakma and Murong tribes. Erythrina variegata L. was used in common by the Chakma, Marma, and Murong tribes. The various plant parts used included leaves, roots, barks, flowers, and fruits. The percent use of these plant parts were, respectively, 52.6, 15.8, 21.1, 5.3 and 5.3%. Mostly, a single plant or plant part was used for treatment of helminthiasis, although use of combinations of plant parts was also observed in three instances. There was only one instance where a combination of plant species was used. The Chakma tribe used a combination of leaves of Ananas comosus along with roots of Areca catechu L. and bark of Erythrina variegata for treatment of helminthiasis. The medicinal plants used by the various tribes of Chittagong Hill Tracts present considerable potential for scientific studies towards discovery of more effective medicines to treat helminthiasis, which can be caused by a variety of parasitic worms and is endemic throughout the different countries of the world. Full Text Link: http://scinet.dost.gov.ph/union/Downloads/105-111_224634.pdf
A Comparative Analysis of Medicinal Plants used by Three Tribes of Chittagong Hill Tracts Region, Bangladesh to Treat Leukorrhea
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Hossan, Md. Shahadat; Seraj, Syeda; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Begum, Rahima; Nasrin, Dilruba; Khatun, Zubaida; Hossain, Mohammad Shahadat; Khatun, Afsana; Jahan, Farhana Israt
Leukorrhea is the flow of whitish, yellowish or greenish discharge from the vagina of a female, which can happen under normal conditions as well as bacterial or fungal infections. Such discharges may originate from the vagina, ovaries, fallopian tubes, or, most commonly, the cervix. In our ongoing ethnomedicinal surveys among the various tribes and regions of Bangladesh, it was observed that leukorrhea due to infections were common among the tribal women as evidenced by the number of plants used by the tribal medicinal practitioners to treat this infective condition. The objective of the present survey was to learn more about the medicinal plants used for treatment of leukorrhea by the tribal medicinal practitioners of the Chakma, Murong and Tonchonga tribes. All three tribes reside in the southeastern forested region of Bangladesh known as the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Informed consent was obtained from the tribal medicinal practitioners and interviews were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. It was observed that the tribal medicinal practitioners of the Chakma, Murong, and Tonchonga tribes used 13 plant species distributed into 12 families for treatment of leukorrhea. Roots constituted the major plant part used (53.3%), followed by leaves (20.0%), bark (13.3%), and whole plant and stem (6.7% each). The Kavirajes did not distinguish whether the leukorrhea originated from bacterial or fungal infections of the vagina or was due to other complications of the ovary, fallopian tube or cervix. In general, any sign of especially whitish discharge from the vagina of females was treated as leukorrhea and medications prescribed accordingly. Since the tribal population in their densely forested abodes lack access to modern medicinal facilities, the medicinal plants can form a primary mode of health-care for treatment of this occasionally infective medical condition in females.
A Comparison of Medicinal Plant Usage by Folk Medicinal Practitioners of two Adjoining Villages in Lalmonirhat district, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2011) Jahan, Farhana Israt; Rajib Ul Hasan, Md.; Jahan, Rownak; Seraj, Syeda; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Islam, Md. Tabibul; Khatun, Zubaida; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) provide primary health care to the rural population of around 86,000 villages in Bangladesh. Every village has at least one or more practicing Kavirajes. The Kavirajes rely almost exclusively on medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments. It was of interest to find out whether differences exist among the Kavirajes of the same as well as adjoining villages in the type of ailments treated and the species of medicinal plants used for treatment of any specific ailment. Interviews were conducted of the folk medicinal practitioners with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and using the guided field-walk method. Plant specimens as pointed out by the practitioners were collected and pressed on the field and identification completed at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. The survey was conducted among the five Kavirajes practicing in the adjoining villages of Uttar Musrat Madati and Kisasat Madati in Lalmonirhat district, Bangladesh. The five Kavirajes of the two surveyed villages used 85 plant species distributed in to 51 families for treatment of various ailments. While some similarity was noted in the plant species and formulations used for treatment of a specific ailment, overall, the Kavirajes differed considerably as to the selection of plants and the formulations used for treatment. Each Kaviraj also specialized in his own unique list of ailments, which ailments were not treated by the other Kavirajes. Each Kaviraj seemed to have his own unique repertoire of plant species for treatment of ailments, a knowledge which was not shared usually with other Kavirajes. Moreover, available scientific literature validated the traditional use of a number of plants and indicated that they can be potential sources of newer drugs.
A Comprehensive Analysis and Anti-Cancer Activities of Quercetin in ROS-Mediated Cancer and Cancer Stem Cells
(Scopus, 22-10-04) Biswas, Partha; Dey, Dipta; Biswas, Polash Kumar; Rahaman, Tanjim Ishraq; Saha, Shuvo; Parvez, Anwar; Khan, Dhrubo Ahmed; Lily, Nusrat Jahan; Saha, Konka; Sohel, Md; Hasan, Mohammad Mehedi; Al Azad, Salauddin; Bibi, Shabana; Hasan, Md. Nazmul; Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Chun, Jaemoo; Rahman, Md. Ataur; Kim, Bonglee
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) induce carcinogenesis by causing genetic mutations, activating oncogenes, and increasing oxidative stress, all of which affect cell proliferation, survival, and apoptosis. When compared to normal cells, cancer cells have higher levels of ROS, and they are responsible for the maintenance of the cancer phenotype; this unique feature in cancer cells may, therefore, be exploited for targeted therapy. Quercetin (QC), a plant-derived bioflavonoid, is known for its ROS scavenging properties and was recently discovered to have various antitumor properties in a variety of solid tumors. Adaptive stress responses may be induced by persistent ROS stress, allowing cancer cells to survive with high levels of ROS while maintaining cellular viability. However, large amounts of ROS make cancer cells extremely susceptible to quercetin, one of the most available dietary flavonoids. Because of the molecular and metabolic distinctions between malignant and normal cells, targeting ROS metabolism might help overcome medication resistance and achieve therapeutic selectivity while having little or no effect on normal cells. The powerful bioactivity and modulatory role of quercetin has prompted extensive research into the chemical, which has identified a number of pathways that potentially work together to prevent cancer, alongside, QC has a great number of evidences to use as a therapeutic agent in cancer stem cells. This current study has broadly demonstrated the function-mechanistic relationship of quercetin and how it regulates ROS generation to kill cancer and cancer stem cells. Here, we have revealed the regulation and production of ROS in normal cells and cancer cells with a certain signaling mechanism. We demonstrated the specific molecular mechanisms of quercetin including MAPK/ERK1/2, p53, JAK/STAT and TRAIL, AMPKα1/ASK1/p38, RAGE/PI3K/AKT/mTOR axis, HMGB1 and NF-κB, Nrf2-induced signaling pathways and certain cell cycle arrest in cancer cell death, and how they regulate the specific cancer signaling pathways as long-searched cancer therapeutics. Keywords: ROS; REDOX imbalance; carcinogenesis; malignant cells; quercetin; cancer stem cells
A Pharmacological Evaluation of Medicinal Plants used by Folk Medicinal Practitioners of Station Purbo Para Village of Jamalpur Sadar Upazila in Jamalpur district, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Khatun, Afsana; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Azad, A. K.; Bashar, A.B.M. Anwarul; Miajee, Z.U.M. Emdad Ullah; Ahsan, Shamima; Nahar, Nusratun; Ahmad, Ishtiaq; Chowdhury, Majeedul H.
An ethnomedicinal survey was carried out at Station Purbo Para village of Jamalpur Sadar sub-district in Jamalpur district of Bangladesh. Information on 121 medicinal plant species was obtained from the folk medicinal practitioners. All plants were screened in the scientific databases and scientific journals for pharmacological activities or presence of phytochemicals, which could be relevant to their folk medicinal uses. 61 plants (50.4%) of the total were found to have relevant pharmacological activities consistent with their uses. The actual number of relevant plants can increase further for a number of plants used by the folk medicinal practitioners are yet to be studied through relevant scientific experiments. The results suggest that the medicinal plants used by the folk medicinal practitioners of Bangladesh cannot be dismiised as irrelevant; in fact, the present study demonstrates that a substantial percentage of plants should be scientifically studied as soon as possible in a thorough manner for they can be sources of potentially important and efficacious drugs.
A Randomized Survey of Medicinal plants used by Folk Medicinal Practitioners in Daudkandi sub-district of Comilla district, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Momen, Md. Abdul; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Nasrin, Dilruba; Hossain, Md. Shahadat; Khatun, Zubaida; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Khatun, Afsana; Jahan, Rownak
Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) are possibly the most ancient practitioners of traditional medicine in Bangladesh and in general are the primary health-care providers to a majority of the rural population and a substantial segment of the urban population in the country. The major characteristic that separates the folk medicinal practitioners from other systems of existing medicinal practices is their almost exclusive use of simple preparations of medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments. Since the population of Bangladesh is primarily rural, village Kavirajes form the major unit from whom ethnomedicinal data can be obtained. The objective of the present study was to conduct a randomized ethnomedicinal survey among the Kavirajes of four villages, Kalakandi, Gorashal, Kadamtoli, and Gunjar, all villages being situated in Daudkandi sub-district of Comilla district in Bangladesh. Informed consent was obtained from the Kavirajes and surveys were carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method, where the Kavirajes took the interviewers to places from where they collected their medicinal plants, pointed out the plants and described their uses. All plant specimens were collected and identified at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. It was observed that the Kavirajes of the four villages surveyed used 44 plant species distributed into 32 families. The Lamiaceae family contributed 4 plants, followed by the Leguminosae, Rutaceae, and Solanaceae families with 3 plants each. Leaves constituted the major plant part used (45.3%), followed by roots (13.2%), and whole plants, fruits, and seeds (7.5% each). The various ailments treated included respiratory tract problems, gastrointestinal disorders, sexual problems, fever, cardiovascular disorders, mental disease, diabetes, loss of hair, vomiting, menstrual problems, skin disorders, hepatic disorders, piles, leprosy, calcium deficiency, dental diseases, cracked foot, bleeding, insect bites, mumps, rabies, chicken pox, body ache, and bone fracture. Cumulatively, the plants obtained in the present survey present considerable potential for further scientific research towards discovery of lead compounds and more efficacious drugs.
A Randomized Survey of Medicinal Plants used by Folk Medicinal Practitioners in Ten Districts of Bangladesh to Treat Leprosy
(GALE, 2010-05) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Azad, A. K.; Seraj, Syeda; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Begum, Rahima; Nasrin, Dilruba; Khatun, Zubaida; Hossain, Mohammad Shahadat; Khatun, Afsana; Miajee, Z.U.M. Emdad Ullah; Jahan, Farhana Israt
Leprosy is a chronic disease caused by the microorganisms Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. It is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract. The pauci-bacillary form of leprosy is treated with the drugs, rifampicin and Dapsone (diamino-diphenyl sulfone), while the multi-bacillary form of the disease is treated with the drugs rifampicin, clofazimine, and Dapsone. Bangladesh is one of the five countries who contribute to 82% of the sufferers from this disease world-wide. The disease is prevalent especially among the rural and urban poor, who despite provision of modern treatment often visit folk medicinal practitioners, who utilize medicinal plants for treatment of leprosy. Since the above drugs has been reported to have a number of adverse side-effects, it was of interest to document the medicinal plants used to treat leprosy in Bangladesh for such plants can prove to be valuable sources of drugs with less side-effects. Randomized ethnomedicinal surveys were therefore carried out in ten districts of Bangladesh to learn more about medicinal plants used by folk medicinal practitioners. Informed consent was obtained from the practitioners prior to interviews, which were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. The names of 16 plants were obtained, the plants being distributed into 11 families. The Combretaceae family provided the highest number of three plants followed by the Apocynaceae and Fabaceae families with 2 plants each. The various plant parts used to treat leprosy included whole plant, leaves, barks, roots, and seeds. The plants present considerable potential for discovery of novel compounds with less side-effect for treatment of leprosy and can, at least in Bangladesh, become a source of affordable and more easily available drugs.
A Survey of Medicinal and Functional Food Plants Used by the Folk Medicinal Practitioners of Three Villages in Sreepur Upazilla, Magura District, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Mollik, Md. Ariful Haque; Islam, Md. Koushikul; Islam, Md. Rofiqul; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Khatun, Zubaida; Seraj, Syeda; Chowdhury, Majeedul H.; Islam, Farhana; Miajee, Z.U.M. Emdadullah; Jahan, Rownak
Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) provide medical care to substantial segments of the rural and urban population of Bangladesh. The Kavirajes specialize in the use of medicinal plants for treatment of ailments or their symptoms. Besides use of medicinal plants for therapeutic purposes, the Kavirajes also prescribe medicinal plants for preventive purposes, which may include plants for maintenance of overall good health, or to maintain various parts of the body and their functions in a healthy state. As such, the latter group of medicinal plants can be classified as functional foods or nutraceuticals. This latter aspect of the Kavirajes, although quite commonly practiced, has rarely been documented or reported. It was the objective of the present study to conduct an ethnomedicinal survey among the Kavirajes of three villages in Sreepur Upazilla (subdistrict) of Magura district, Bangladesh to gather information on medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes for both therapeutic as well as preventive purposes. Information was collected from the Kavirajes with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. It was observed that the Kavirajes used a total of 54 plants, among which a number of plants served both therapeutic and preventive purposes. The plants were distributed into 37 families; the Fabaceae and the Lamiaceae families provided 4 plants per family, followed by the Combretaceae family with 3 plants. Leaves were the major plant part used, constituting 41.4% of total uses. It was further observed that all medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes served to treat multiple ailments. 38 plants were used for treatment of respiratory tract disorders, 33 plants for hepatic disorders, 36plants for gastrointestinal tract problems, and 26 plants for treatment of various types of sexual disorders. 17 plants were used for treatment of fever, 16 for treatment of leprosy, 19 for treatment of piles, 15 for treatment of edema, and 16 for treatment of skin disorders. 17 plants were used as astringent, 11 plants used as bitter, and 12 plants as blood purifier. Other ailments treated by the Kavirajes included tuberculosis, cuts and wounds, rheumatism, helminthiasis, menstrual problems, urinary problems, heart disorders, tumor, burning sensations in body, spleen disorders, vaginal diseases, goiter, eye problems, leucorrhea, insanity, infections, throat diseases, fractures, vomiting, obesity, pain, and anal diseases. The various uses of medicinal plants as functional foods included to maintain healthy brain functions, to regularize urine and stool, to maintain good eyes, to maintain healthy hair, to improve voice, to increase intelligence and memory, and to increase longevity. The plants used for both therapeutic and preventive purposes by the Kavirajes have obvious potentiality for scientific studies, which can lead to discoveries of better medicines as well as functional foods. The latter is important, because it can lessen the incidences of diseases and provide a cost-effective way to maintaining the body and its vital organs in good health.
A survey of medicinal plants used by folk medicinal practitioners for treatment of gastrointestinal disorders in randomly selected areas of four districts of Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Seraj, Syeda; Nasrin, Dilruba; Khatun, Zubaida; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Azad, A.K.; Khatun, Afsana; Begum, Rahima; Jahan, Farhana Israt
Bangladesh is a small developing country with the majority of population living in over 86,000 villages spread around the country. A substantial portion of the urban population lives in slum areas. Both rural population as well as the urban slum population resides under conditions where proper sanitation conditions are lacking and the drinking water quality is usually poor. As a result various types of gastrointestinal disorders are prevalent throughout Bangladesh. A large number of the rural and urban slum people obtain treatment for various gastrointestinal disorders from folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes), who rely on simple preparations of medicinal plants for treatment. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey among the Kavirajes of various randomly selected areas in four districts, namely, Rajshahi, Jessore, Tangail, and Dinajpur in Bangladesh. The districts are located, respectively, in the northern, southern, central, and northern part of the country. Informed consent was obtained from the Kavirajes prior to the survey. Interviews were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method, where the Kavirajes took the interviewers to spots from where they collected their medicinal plants, pointed out the plants, and gave their local names and uses. All plant specimens were collected and dried in the field and later brought to Bangladesh National Herbarium, Dhaka for complete identification. Considerable variation was observed in the family and species of medicinal plants used for treatment of gastrointestinal disorders by the Kavirajes of the four districts surveyed. The Kavirajes of two surveyed villages of Rajshahi district used 9 plants distributed into 8 families; the Kavirajes of four surveyed villages of Jessore district used 5 plants distributed into 5 families; the Kavirajes of a small town surveyed in Tangail district used 7 plants distributed into 6 families; and the Kavirajes of two villages in Dinajpur district used 25 plants distributed into 18 families. The use of whole plant or plant parts also differed considerably between the Kavirajes of the four districts. The Kavirajes of Rajshahi district used the leaves, roots, fruits, and seeds, while the Kavirajes of Jessore district used only the leaves, stems, and barks of plants. The Kavirajes of Tangail district used mainly the stems followed by roots, while the Kavirajes of Dinajpur district used mostly the leaves of medicinal plants followed by fruits. The survey highlights the considerable differences in medicinal plant usage by Kavirajes of different areas of Bangladesh. At the same time, the survey points out the diversity of plant species present in the country form treatment of gastrointestinal disorders, which comprises of a number of ailments prevalent worldwide and suggests that considerable potential exists for modern scientific studies to be carried out on the medicinal plant species in the quest for better drugs.
A Survey of Medicinal Plants Used by Folk Medicinal Practitioners of Paschim Shawra and Palordi Villages of Gaurnadi Upazila in Barisal District, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2011) Biswas, Anup; Haq, Wahid Mozammel; Akber, Mira; Ferdausi, Dilara; Seraj, Syeda; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) are possibly the most ancient practitioners of traditional medicine in Bangladesh and in general are the primary health-care providers to a majority of the rural population and a substantial segment of the urban population in the country. The Kavirajes rely almost exclusively on medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments. The medicinal plants chosen by the Kavirajes vary considerably even between adjacent villages. To get a comprehensive view of folk medicinal practices, it is therefore important to survey as many Kavirajes of different villages as possible. The objective of the present study was to conduct an ethnomedicinal survey among the Kavirajes of Paschim Shawra and Palordi villages, Gaurnadi Upazila, Barisal district, which lies in the southern section of the country. Informed consent was obtained of the Kavirajes and interviews conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. All plant specimens as pointed out by the Kavirajes were collected and brought back for identification at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. It was observed that the Kavirajes of Paschim Shawra and Palordi villages used 51 plants distributed into 33 families for treatment of various ailments. The Fabaceae family contribued the higest number of species (6 plants) followed by the Lamiaceae (4 plants), Lythraceae and Zingiberaceae families (3 plants per family). Leaves constituted the major plant part used (43%), followed by whole plant(12%), rhizome (6%), bark (4%).The largest number of remedies was used to treat gastrointestinal disorders (23 plants), suggesting that this is the most prevalent disorder in the area. Respiratory tract disorder (11 plants) like coughs, chest pain, bronchitis, asthma and whooping cough and sexual disorders (11 plants) including leucorrhea, sexual weakness, menstrual problem, gonorrhea and loss of libido formed the second most common disorders treated by the Kavirajes. 10 plants were used for the treatment of skin diseases like tinia infection, scabies, and eczema. The Kavirajes also used medicinal plants for treatment of ailments including diabetes, urogenital disorder, hepatic disorder, neurological disorder, pain and inflammation, fever, weakness, infectious, cancer, blood purifier, blood clotting agent, anemia, snake bite, insect bite ,aging, appetizer, blood pressure, malaria, heart disease and others. A perusal of the scientific literature showed that uses of several plants by the Kavirajes are validated by scientific studies on the pharmacological activities of the relevant plant species. Overall, the plants present considerable potential for further scientific studies leading to discovery of novel drugs.
A Survey of Medicinal Plants Used by Kavirajes of Barisal Town in Barisal District, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Seraj, Syeda; Khatun, Zubaida; Jamal, Farhana; Ahsan, Shamima; Jahan, Rownak; Ahmed, Ishtiaq; Chowdhury, Majeedul H.; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
A substantial section of the population of Bangladesh is poor and more than a third of the total population of 150 million people lives below the poverty line (i.e. having a daily income of less than US$ 1 per day). The poorer section of the population resides mostly in the rural areas and the urban slums. The rural population andpopulation in small towns in addition suffer from proper access to health-care facilities and are not always in a position to afford the costs of allopathic treatment. They therefore rely on folk medicinal practitioners otherwise known as Kavirajes for treatment of their various ailments. The Kavirajes rely on administration of medicinal plants either orally or topically for treatment of diseases. Each Kaviraj has his unique repertoire of medicinal plants, which is closely guarded and usually passed onto an immediate member of the family in the successive generation. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey on medicinal plant usage among selected Kavirajes of Barisal town in Barisal district, Bangladesh. Interviews were conducted with the help of a semistructured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. Information was obtained as to the local name of plants, parts used, formulations and dosages. It was found that the interviewed Kavirajes used 49 plants distributed into 28 families in their treatment of various ailments. The Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Lamiaceae, and Moraceae families contributed 4 plans each, while the Solanaceae and the Verbenaceae family contributed 3 plants per family. The various plant parts used by the Kavirajes in their formulations included whole plant, leaf, stem, root, bark, flower, fruit, seed, and sap. Leaves constituted the major plant part used (34.8% of total uses), followed by roots (15.2%). Gastrointestinal disorders (stomach ache, constipation, dysentery, diarrhea) formed the major group of ailments treated by the Kavirajes and a total of 11 plants were used to treat these ailments. Eight plants were used to treat skin disorders, 7 plants for pain relief, and 6 plants for respiratory tract disorders like coughs and mucus. Other ailments treated by the Kavirajes included urinary tract problems, cuts and wounds, meho (a term used by the Kavirajes to indicate urinary problem arising from endocrinological disorders or diabetes), fever, skin disorders, malaria, rheumatism, dog and snake bites, hepatic disorders (jaundice, enlarged liver), tooth infections, eye problems, heart disorders, diabetes, hydrocele, goiter, helminthiasis, menstrual problems, and fractures. Plants have always formed a rich source of modern drugs. The medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes need to be scientifically studied for phytochemical constituents and pharmacological activities towards discovery of lead compounds and more efficacious newer drugs.
An Ethnomedicinal Survey of Vitbilia Village in Sujanagar Sub-District of Pabna District, Bangladesh
(IDOSI, 2011) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Mollik, Ariful Haque; Ali, Mohammad; Abbas, Fahad Bin; Jahan, Rownak; Khatun, Afsana; Seraj, Syeda; Ahsan, Shamima
An ethonomedicinal survey was carried out in the village of Vitbilia situated in Sujanagar sub-district of Pabna district, Bangladesh. Informed consent was obtained from the folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) and interviews were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method, where the Kavirajes took the interviewers to areas from where they collected their plants and pointed out their uses. Plant specimens were collected, pressed and dried in the field and later identified at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. It was observed that the Kavirajes used 48 plants distributed into 30 families for treatment of various ailments. The Fabaceae family formed the largest family contributing six plants followed by the Acanthaceae, Asteraceae and Lamiaceae families contributing three plants each. Leaves constituted the major plant part used (41.2%) followed by roots (27.9%) and stems (13.2%). Other plant parts used included whole plants, flowers, seeds, fruits and plant sap. The various ailments treated included hepatic disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, skin disorders, snake bites, cuts and wounds, sexually transmitted diseases, pain, fever, respiratory tract disorders, paralysis, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, impotency and bone fractures. The folk medicinal uses of a number of plants are validated by available scientific studies on those plant species. Cumulatively, the plant species reported in the present survey can form an important source of lead compounds and more efficacious drugs through further scientific studies.
An Ethnoveterinary Survey of Medicinal Plants Used by Folk Medicinal Practitioners to Treat Cattle Diseases in Randomly Selected Areas of Bagerhat District, Bangladesh
(GALE, 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Mollik, Ariful Haque; Alam, Jobaer; Ahmmed, Bulbul; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Sintaha, Mariz; Jahan, Rownak; Khaleque, Himel Nahreen; Chowdhury, Majeedul H.; Noor, Farjana Akther; Rahman, Shahnaz; Seraj, Syeda
Bangladesh is a predominantly agricultural country containing 86,000 villages. The village population consists of mainly farmers, with the majority of them being resource-poor in the sense of having small land holdings on which they grow various crops, the major crop being paddy. Most farmers maintain one or two cows, buffaloes, or goats in their homesteads. Animals like cows or buffaloes are mainly used for plowing (use of machines like tractors cannot be afforded by the small farmers) the land or as a source for milk production, the latter being both sold as well as consumed at home. Goats are raised for selling or occasional consumption of meat. By tradition, and because of the general poverty prevalent among small farmers, they still depend on traditional medicinal practitioners for treatment of their cattle during occurrence of various cattle ailments. The traditional medicinal practitioners, known as Kavirajes or cattle Kavirajes, rely on dispensation of various medicinal plants for treatment of diverse ailments. It was the objective of the present study to conduct an ethnoveterinary survey among the Kavirajes of randomly selected villages of Bagerhat district, Bangladesh to gather information on the medicinal plants used for treatment of cattle ailments. Interviews were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. A total of 51 plants were noted to be used by the Kavirajes. These plants came from 29 families. The Fabaceae family provided 7 plants, followed by the Euphorbiaceae family with 4 plants, and the Acanthaceae, Combretaceae, Lamiaceae, Solanaceae, and Zingiberaceae families providing 3 plants each. The Kavirajes used medicinal plants for both curative as well as preventive purposes; however, curative purposes dominated over preventive. Twenty seven different groups of ailments were treated by the Kavirajes. Eleven plants were used for treatment of various gastrointestinal disorders in cattle suggesting that this is the most prevalent disorder among the animals. Six plants were used to increase milk production in cattle, and four plants for prevention of diseases or to protect cattle from insect bites. The various ailments treated by the Kavirajes included pox, fever, respiratory tract disorders like coughs or mucus, helminthiasis, pain, lice, mite or insect infestations, skin infections, rheumatism, swelling of throat (hemorrhagic septicemia), body deformity, urinary problems, jaundice, lameness, fractures and sprains, edema, snake bite, rabies, leg and nipple infections, burns, eye problems, foot and mouth diseases, and to stop bleeding when extensible bleeding occured after giving birth. Overall, the plants offer a cheap and alternative remedy to the farmers for treatment of ailments of their cattle, which they can scarcely afford to treat with costlier modern medicines. Key words: Folk medicine, medicinal plants, ethnoveterinary, Bagerhat district, Bangladesh
An evaluation of antinociceptive effect of methanol extracts of Desmodium gangeticum (L.) Dc. stems and Benincasa hispida (Thunb.) Cogn. leaves on acetic acid-induced gastric pain in mice
(The Free Library, 2010-09-01) Jahan, Farhana Israt; Hossain, Mohaammad Shahadat; Mamun, Abdullah; Hossain, Md. Tozammal; Seraj, Syeda; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Khatun, Zubaida; Andhi, Nahin Zaman; Chowdhury, Majeedul; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Desmodium gangeticum Duchesne (Fabaceae, local name: shalpani) is commonly found in the wild areas of Bangladesh. The leaves of the plant are used by folk medicinal practitioners for treatment of toothache, chest pains, and fungal infections. Benincasa hispida (Thunb.) Cogn. (Cucurbitaceae, local name: chal kumra) is cultivated for its edible fruits, which are cooked and consumed as vegetable. The fruits are used by the folk medicinal practitioners for treatment of tumor, gonorrhea, and helminthiasis. The leaves are used by the folk medicinal practitioners for relief from stomach pain. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the antinociceptive potential of stems of D. gangeticum and leaves of B. hispida in acetic acid-induced gastric pain with consequent abdominal constrictions in Swiss albino mice. Administration of methanol extract of stems of D. gangeticum was observed to cause dose-dependent and significant reduction of acetic acid-induced abdominal constrictions in mice. At the highest dose tested of the extract, namely 400 mg/kg body weight, the extract caused 52.6% inhibition of abdominal constrictions, when compared to control mice. In contrast, the standard antinociceptive drug, aspirin, caused 38.6% and 49.2% inhibitions of abdominal constrictions, when administered at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight, respectively. The results demonstrated that the methanol extract of stems of D. gangeticum was highly effective in the reduction of acetic acid-induced gastric pain, and as such validate the use of the plant in folk medicine for treatment of pain. The methanol extract of leaves of B. hispida also caused significant reductions in acetic acid-induced abdominal constrictions. However, the number of constrictions was lowest at the lowest dose tested of 50 mg/kg body weight, where it caused 48.1% inhibition in the number of abdominal constrictions (writhings). At higher doses, the percent inhibition of constrictions decreased progressively, and was 31.4% at the highest dose tested (400 mg/kg body weight). The results with B. hispida, although validating the use of the plant for pain, also suggest that any treatment with leaves of the plant for pain reduction purposes must be done with low doses. The progressive dose-dependent decrease of inhibitory activities is suggestive of presence of other constituents in the leaves, which may play an antagonistic role to constituents that modulate its antinociceptive effects.
Medicinal plants used by folk medicinal practitioners in three villages of Natore and Rajshahi districts, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2010) Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Jahan, Rownak; Azad, A.K.; Seraj, Syeda; Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Begum, Rahima; Nasrin, Dilruba; Khatun, Zubaida; Hossain, Mohammad Shahadat; Khatun, Afsana; Miajee, Z.U.M. Emdadullah
Folk medicinal healers (Kavirajes) form the primary health-care providers to the predominantly rural population residing in over 86,000 villages throughout Bangladesh. The Kavirajes treat various ailments with whole plants or plant parts from which they make simple decoctions or pastes, which are administered orally or topically. Their mode of treatment is simple, yet considerable variations exist between Kavirajes of even adjoining villages as to the species of plant chosen for treatment of any given ailment. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey on folk medicinal use of plants in the village of Islampur in Natore district, Bangladesh and the villages of Itaghati and Ataibidir in Rajshahi district, Bangladesh, which are adjoining districts. Informed consent was obtained from the Kavirajes and surveys were carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method, where the Kavirajes pointed out medicinal plants during field-walks with the interviewers and pointed out their uses. A total of 87 medicinal plants distributed into 44 families were observed to be used by the Kavirajes of the three villages surveyed. The Fabaceae family contributed the highest number of plants (9), followed by the Solanaceae family (7) and the Euphorbiaceae family with 5 plants. Whole plants constituted the majority of uses (27.0%), followed respectively, by leaves (22.7%), roots (14.9%), seeds (9.2%), and fruits (8.5%). Other plant parts used included stems, barks, flowers, and tubers. The various ailments treated included helminthiasis, sexual disorders, respiratory tract disorders, pain, gastrointestinal disorders, skin disorders, urinary tract disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, snake bites, yellow fever, cancer, alopecia, cuts and wounds, paralysis, burns, malaria, cholera, gall bladder enlargement, diabetes, heart diseases, weakness, piles, obesity, placentitis, eye disorders, and hepatitis. Since a number of modern allopathic medicines owe their discovery to studies of medicinal practices of indigenous peoples, cumulatively these medicinal plants present significant potential for further scientific research leading to discovery of lead compounds and more efficacious drugs.
Medicinal plants used by the folk medicinal practitioners of Bangladesh: a randomized survey in a village of Narayanganj district
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2011) Karim, Md. Sajjadul; Rahman, Md. Mahfuzur; Shahid, Sadia Binta; Malek, Ishita; Rahman, Md. Atiqur; Jahan, Sharmin; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Folk medicinal practitioners play an important role in the primary health-care system of Bangladesh. They are known as Kavirajes and practice in villages, towns and cities of the country. The mainstay of their formulation is medicinal plants, which is either administered orally or topically in the form of decoctions, pastes, pills, juice or direct administration of whole plant or plant parts. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey in a randomly chosen village, which lies between the two urban areas of Dhaka and Narayanganj in Narayanganj district of Bangladesh. Kasipur, the village where the survey was carried out had one Kaviraj who administered to the population’s need in various diseases. It was observed that the Kaviraj used 64 medicinal plants in his formulations. The plants were distributed into 41 families. The Asteraceae family contributed to the highest number of plants (6) followed by the Fabaceae family with 5 plants. The Apocynaceae, Lamiaceae, Rutaceae, Solanaceae and Zingiberaceae families contributed 3 plants per family. Leaves constituted the major plant part used, forming 47.1% of total uses. Leaves were followed by roots at 16.3% and fruits at 13.5%. Gastrointestinal disorders and skin diseases were the main ailments treated. Other than diabetes, the Kaviraj did not treat any complicated diseases. This was probably because since the village surveyed was between two urban areas, the village population had quite easy access to allopathic doctors and modern clinics in the urban areas. Despite the easy access to modern doctors, the village people relied on the Kaviraj for treatment of common ailments, suggesting that folk medicinal practitioners can still play a considerable role in the day to day care of health and treatment of common diseases, thus saving a patient from incurring substantial costs related to modern allopathic doctors and clinics. Full Text Link: http://www.aensiweb.net/AENSIWEB/aejsa/aejsa/2011/405-414.pdf
Search for Phytoremediating Plants in a Textile Dye Polluted Area of Dhaka City, Bangladesh
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2014-06-28) Seraj, Syeda; Azam, F.M. Safiul; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Nasrin, Dilruba; Jahan, Sharmin; Rahman, Shiblur; Morshed, Md. Tanvir; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Phytoremediation is a powerful yet affordable tool for clean-up of various contaminated sites through use of plants. Many plants exist that can not only survive in polluted areas but also hyperaccumulate industrial and domestic pollutants, which can range from heavy metals to oil and grease. Bangladesh is noted for its garment industries, but suffers from the problem of having areas, which are contaminated with textile dye wastes. Such an area exists in Savar of Dhaka city, the capital of Bangladesh. A survey was carried out in the area to search for plants growing within the textile dye contaminated site with the further objective determining the phytoremediation capacity of the plants through available database searches. Our survey found 15 plants distributed into 10 families to be growing in the contaminated area. Literature search showed that nearly all the plants have reported phytoremediation capacities, and as such can possibly provide an easy and affordable way to clean up textile dye contaminated sites.
Studies with Callus Induction of Vitex Negundo: an Aromatic Medicinal Plant
(The American-Eurasian Network for Scientific Information (AENSI), 2011) Chowdhury, Farzana Begum; Azam, F.M. Safiul; Hassan, Md. Maruf; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Seraj, Syeda; Khatun, Zubaida; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
Vitex negundo (Family: Verbenaceae) is a commonly used medicinal plant of Bangladesh. It has a broad range of uses in folk medicine. The plant parts possess diverse pharmacological activities including antimicrobial, analgesic, antiinflammatory, anti-fertility, antioxidant, antihyperglycemic, and hepato-protective effects. Considering its importance in folk medicine, an in vitro method of callus induction for this plant was developed. The objective was to investigate the effects of phytohormones for callus induction in the species. Explants (leaves and internodes) collected from field grown plants were cultured onto Murashige-Skoog’s (MS) medium following surface sterilization with 0.1% HgCl2 containing different concentrations and combination of 2, 4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2, 4-D), a-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA), 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP); 3% sugar and 7% agar. Among the auxins, 2, 4-D [2.0 mg/l] supplemented in MS medium showed highest response for callogenesis with white and friable callus, whereas slower response than 2, 4-D, but friable and embryonic callus was obtained in MS + NAA [1.5 mg/l]. Quick and fastest callus growth was observed when the combination of 2, 4-D [3.0 mg/l] and NAA [1.0 mg/l] was added to MS medium. The only exception between the combinations was the variation in forming loose and wet callus. This callus induction protocol developed from our experiment can successfully play a role for large-scale culture of this shrub in vitro and isolation of bioactive compounds from this plant.
Tribal Formulations for Treatment of Pain: A Study of the Bede Community Traditional Medicinal Practitioners of Porabari Village in Dhaka District, Bangladesh
(African Journals Online (AJOL), 2013) Seraj, Syeda; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Monjur-EKhuda, Mohammad; Khan, Mohammad Shamiul Hasan; Aporna, Sadia Afrin; Jahan, Rownak; Samarrai, Walied; Islam, Farhana; Khatun, Zubaida; Rahmatullah, Mohammed
The Bedes form one of the largest tribal or indigenous communities in Bangladesh and are popularly known as the boat people or water gypsies because of their preference for living in boats. They travel almost throughout the whole year by boats on the numerous waterways of Bangladesh and earn their livelihood by selling sundry items, performing jugglery acts, catching snakes, and treating village people by the various riversides with their traditional medicinal formulations. Life is hard for the community, and both men and women toil day long. As a result of their strenuous lifestyle, they suffer from various types of pain, and have developed an assortment of formulations for treatment of pain in different parts of the body. Pain is the most common reason for physician consultation in all parts of the world including Bangladesh. Although a number of drugs are available to treat pain, including non-steroidal, steroidal, and narcotic drugs, such drugs usually have side-effects like causing bleeding in the stomach over prolonged use (as in the case of rheumatic pain), or can be addictive. Moreover, pain arising from causes like rheumatism has no proper treatment in allopathic medicine. It was the objective of the present study to document the formulations used by the Bede traditional practitioners for pain treatment, for they claim to have used these formulations over centuries with success. Surveys were conducted among a large Bede community, who reside in boats on the Bangshi River by Porabari village of Savar area in Dhaka district of Bangladesh. Interviews of 30 traditional practitioners were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. It was observed that the Bede practitioners used 53 formulations for treatment of various types of pain, the main ingredient of all formulations being medicinal plants. Out of the 53 formulations, 25 were for treatment of rheumatic pain, either exclusively, or along with other types of body pain. A total of 65 plants belonging to 39 families were used in the formulations. The Fabaceae family provided 7 plants followed by the Solanaceae family with 4 plants. 47 out of the 53 formulations were used topically, 5 formulations were orally administered, and 1 formulation had both topical and oral uses. 8 formulations for treatment of rheumatic pain contained Calotropis gigantea, suggesting that the plant has strong potential for further scientific studies leading to discovery of novel efficacious compounds for rheumatic pain treatment. Full Text Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ajtcam.v10i1.5
Use of menispermaceae family plants in folk medicine of Bangladesh
(GALE, 2010-01) Jahan, Rownak; Khatun, Afsana; Nahar, Nusratun; Jahan, Farhana Israt; Chowdhury, Anita Rani; Nahar, Aynun; Seraj, Syeda; Khatun, Zubaida; Rahmatullah, Mohammed; Mahal, M.J.
The Menispermaceae family of flowering plants comprises of about 70 genera and 420 species. The plants belonging to this family are mostly climbing plants and the great majority of the species can be found in countries with a tropical climate. Although small, the family contains a number of plants with scientifically recognized important pharmacological activities. The folk medicinal system of Bangladesh mainly relies on medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments, where the folk medicinal practitioners (otherwise known as Kavirajes) use whole plants or plant parts for oral or topical administration for treatment of ailments. We conducted an ethnomedicinal survey throughout over 100 regions and among seven different tribes of Bangladesh to collect data on the use of Menispermaceae family plants for medicinal purposes. Data was collected with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and plant specimens as pointed out by the Kavirajes were identified at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. Six species belonging to the Menispermaceae family were observed to be in use by the Kavirajes. These six species were Cocculus hirsutus, Stephania glabra, Stephania japonica, Tinospora cordifolia, Tinospora crispa, and Tinospora sinensis. Of the six species, Stephania japonica and Tinospora cordifolia were most frequently used for treatment of ailments like diabetes, edema, pain, bone fracture, debility, gastrointestinal disorders, respiratory tract disorders, helminthiasis, malaria, hepatic disorders, tuberculosis, measles, urinary tract disorders, and hypertension. The folk medicinal use of several of these plants has been validated through scientific studies.