Department of Applied Biology, Escuela Politécnica Superior, Miguel Hernández University, Ctra. Beniel Km 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Alicante, Spain.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2012 Oct 31;144(1):44-56. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2012.08.024. Epub 2012 Aug 29.
Medicinal plant complexes of different species sharing vernacular names, morphological and aromatic characteristics and uses are common in traditional medicine of different cultures. A quantitative methodology as a tool for ethnopharmacological studies is presented for systematically analyzing morphological and therapeutic features shared by several species integrating such complexes.
The aim of this paper is to apply a novel methodology to determine whether complexes are homogeneous and species within the complexes are completely interchangeable or not. Moreover, to find out if those species giving the name to the complex are also those which provide a large number of complex descriptors. For this purpose we study the complex of medicinal plant species which share the vernacular name "Árnica" in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, through the systematic recording of past and current local therapeutic uses and administration forms, plant-parts and localities where the different species are used. Being a newly introduced name in the region, "Árnica" offers an interesting field to study the genesis and dynamics of ethnopharmacological categories and medicinal plant complexes.
A systematic review of the botanical, ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological literature from 1895 to 2010 and of databases was performed in order to obtain information on the use of plants locally named as "Árnica" or with binomials that include the word "Árnica", in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
The "Árnica" complex includes 32 different plant species in the Iberian Peninsula, belonging to six families of Angiosperms, which partially share morphological characteristics and therapeutic properties. These are some of the most popular medicinal species of the Iberian Peninsula and are mainly used to treat inflammation, wounds, hematoma, and contusion. The vegetal materials are primarily macerated or decocted, and the methods of administration are plasters, washes, frictions or direct application of the plant.
Medicinal plant complexes are frequent in ethnopharmacological contexts and require being clearly detected, and systematically studied. Plant species within each complex are only partly interchangeable because the sharing of characters, including medicinal uses, is low. "Árnica" medicinal plant complex is extremely dynamic in the Iberian Peninsula. In less than two hundred years up to 32 different plant species belonging to six different plant families became labeled "Árnica". Medical staff was extremely influential in the adoption of "Árnica" as a vernacular name between 1785 and 1864 in Spain and Portugal but not in the repertory of uses adopted for the plants within the complex. In terms of total descriptors shared in the complex, Arnica montana L. is less relevant than other three species, belonging to the Inuleae Cass. tribe, of the Asteraceae (Chiliadenus glutinosus (L.) Fourr., Inula montana L. and Dittrichia viscosa (L.) Greuter). Thus "Árnica" complex is labeled by three different Inuleae Cass. species and receives the name from a fourth Madieae Jeps. species (Arnica montana L.).
不同物种的药用植物复合物，具有相同的俗名、形态和香气特征以及用途，这在不同文化的传统医学中很常见。本文提出了一种定量方法作为民族药理学研究的工具，用于系统分析几个整合此类复合物的物种所共有的形态和治疗特征。
本文的目的是应用一种新方法来确定复合物是否同质，以及复合物内的物种是否完全可互换。此外，还要确定赋予复合物名称的物种是否也是提供大量复合物描述符的物种。为此，我们通过系统记录过去和当前的当地治疗用途和给药形式、植物部位和不同物种使用的地点，研究了在伊比利亚半岛和巴利阿里群岛共享俗名“Arnica”的药用植物物种复合物。“Arnica”是该地区新引入的名称，为研究民族药理学范畴和药用植物复合物的起源和动态提供了一个有趣的领域。
对 1895 年至 2010 年的植物学、民族植物学和民族药理学文献以及数据库进行了系统回顾，以获取有关在伊比利亚半岛和巴利阿里群岛当地命名为“Arnica”或包含“Arnica”一词的植物种的使用信息。
“Arnica”复合物包括伊比利亚半岛 32 种不同的植物物种，属于被子植物的六个科，它们部分具有形态特征和治疗特性。这些是伊比利亚半岛最受欢迎的药用物种之一，主要用于治疗炎症、伤口、血肿和瘀伤。植物材料主要是浸泡或煎煮，给药方法是贴剂、洗剂、摩擦或直接应用植物。
药用植物复合物在民族药理学背景下很常见，需要明确识别并进行系统研究。每个复合物内的植物物种只是部分可互换的，因为包括药用用途在内的特征共享程度较低。“Arnica”药用植物复合物在伊比利亚半岛非常活跃。在不到两百年的时间里，多达 32 种不同的植物物种属于六个不同的植物科，被贴上了“Arnica”的标签。医务人员在 1785 年至 1864 年期间在西班牙和葡萄牙对“Arnica”作为俗名的采用具有极大的影响力，但对复合物内植物的采用用途并没有影响。就复合物中共享的总描述符而言，毛茛科植物（Arnica montana L.）的相关性不如其他三种，属于菊科（Chiliadenus glutinosus (L.) Fourr.、Inula montana L. 和 Dittrichia viscosa (L.) Greuter）的 Inuleae Cass. 族。因此，“Arnica”复合物由三种不同的 Inuleae Cass. 物种标记，并从第四种 Madieae Jeps. 物种（Arnica montana L.）获得名称。
