Geospatial mapping of antimalarial plants used by the ethnic groups of Anuppur district (Madhya Pradesh, India)

Abstract

The present ethnobotanical study was conducted to document indigenous knowledge and practices for treatment of malaria in Annupur district, Madhya Pradesh, India. This paper also reports on geographical distribution of prevalent antimalarial plants. Information was collected from 29 traditional healers and 240 other informants about their socio-economy and knowledge of plants by means of semi-structured questionnaires-SSQ and interview-SSI. Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates were recorded for marked locations and integrated in ArcGIS to develop geospatial map. A total of 19 plants belonging to 15 families were identified against malaria. Majority of these were growing wild in forest area (57.89%). <em>Andrographis paniculata</em> was the most cited plant (19.23%) followed by <em>Vitex negundo </em>(10.57%). Highest AMI was recorded for <em>A. paniculata </em>(0.338), whereas, lowest (0.029) for <em>Schefflera vinosa </em>and <em>Datura </em><em>metel. S</em>ynergic antimalarial recipes prepared from two or more plants were preferred over single plant recipe. Roots (63.15%) were the most frequently used plant part followed by leaves (42.10%) and seeds (21.05%)<em>.</em> This is the first ethnopharmacological documentation of antimalarial plants in Central India. It highlights potential sources for the development of novel antimalarial remedies from indiginous traditional knowledge. The spatial maps facilitate the access of local tribal population to these plants.