Ethnobotanical knowledge about herbals used by tribes of Kerala and Tamil Nadu with special reference to Begonia malabarica Lam.

Abstract

Plant based traditional knowledge has become a valuable tool in the search for new bio resources of drugs and neutraceuticals. During the last few decades various Government agencies, NGOs and pharmaceutical companies have carried immense screening in search of novel molecules. The present report deals with the traditional knowledge of tribes residing in different parts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu with special reference to wild specie viz. Begonia malabarica Lam. In the present study, traditional uses of species shared by the different tribes of Tamil Nadu such as Malasar, Kanikkars, Paliyan and Irula are enumerated in this paper. They use the species/its parts or their suitable crude preparations for treating various ailments. The information reveals the potentiality of the plant in terms of curing wounds, skin diseases, hair loss, muscle pain, diabetes, rheumatism, stomach ulcer and fever. Interestingly, the aqueous extract was used for most of the treatments. The crude extract was biochemically analyzed qualitatively and quantified and confirmed as anthocyanin pigments. The traditional indigenous knowledge based system particularly associated with extraction and processing of natural dyes from plants is ancient process. They have traditionally been engaged in extraction, processing and preparation of dyes using barks, leaves, fruits and roots of plant. Further studies are designed in extraction, purification and fractionation of anthocyanin from B. malabarica and to evaluate its biological potentialities.