**3. Displacement of human groups**

482 Pharmacology

cultural miscegenation of many Brazilian communities and ethnic groups, enriching them culturally. All of these groups have traditionally relied on human resources to treat their

According to Rodrigues (2005), human groups that live in the forests are still substitutes for

The cultural diversity that exists in Brazil is the result of the migration process and miscegenation that begun in the sixteenth century. In this period, were made the first records of the Brazilian medicinal flora (Camargo, 2000; Giulietti et al., 2005; Rodrigues et al., 2008). Little was known about Brazil at the time of the discoveries. The first Jesuits, explorers, scientists, and settlers who arrived in Brazil, reported a lot of characteristics

The first European explorers that arrived in Brazil found a large number of medicinal plants used by indigenous tribes who lived here. Knowledge of local flora was merged those brought from Europe. Those that migrated from Africa (1530-1888) play an important role in traditional popular knowledge in Brazil until today (Rodrigues, 2007). The Africans who

Due the fusion among human groups from different sites of the world and because of the colonization of the Americas, some plants of temperate climate were brought and introduced in tropical locations (Rodrigues et al., 2008), which made these regions,

laboratory animals, especially in regions where medical treatment is lacking.

observed on the new environment (Kury, 2001 as cited in Giorgetti et al., 2007).

came to Brazil adapted your traditions to the new environment (Rodrigues, 2007).

illnesses and have at their disposal a rich flora.

Fig. 1. The six main biomes of Brazil, (IBAMA, 2011)

Ethnomedicine/ethnopharmacology normally does not cease to carry with the changes in a new social context, and it can continue to influence the choices of care and health practices. The life experiences of migrants in new land, in general, and their professional life in particular, significantly influence in their attitudes and care about the range of health care seeking (Han & Ballis, 2007).

People, who move from their region of origin to live in somewhere else, are subject to various factors that may influence their health and pharmacopoeias. For example, a group of people moving from the Northeast to the Southeast of Brazil were faced with a new routine of life, different customs, new diseases and most importantly, a distinct vegetation. This last factor induces the need to seek pharmacological learning about local natural biodiversity, which can enrich the knowledge of the information ethnopharmacological.

Bharat et al. (2008) mentions that before Lepcha tribe get in Sikim southwest of Tibet, they migrated to Thailand, Burma, Bhutan and Assam during the course of migration, they could collect important information along the way, which was about the use of wild plants available in these sites and important pharmacological characteristics of plants associated with the welfare of humanity local as well as the efficiency that these drugs had to save his life. In turn, in Sikkim, they encountered many new plant species and developed their pharmacological knowledge about them.

As cited by Ososki et al. (2007), ethnobotanical knowledge is dynamic and may evolves with the exchange, transfer and ownership of information among people adapted to new environments (Lee et al., 2001; Voeks and Leony, 2004). There is often an exchange of knowledge, medicinal plants and cultural traditions when human groups migrate between urban and rural settings (Ososki et al., 2007). Knowledge about the use of medicinal plants is sometimes the only option for many human groups in the treatment of diseases. Retracted

Some substances become even promising when they are constantly used by human groups, considering the distances travelled and the consequent exposure to different cultures and vegetal resources(Lee et al. 2001; Ososki et al. 2007).

The Influence of Displacement by Human Groups Among Regions in the

**4.1.3 Dynamics of use** 

**4.1.4 Data analysis** 

**4.2 Results and discussion 4.2.1 Migrant interviews** 

usually because they are not available).

traditions are viewed as well-defined (Heinrich, 2000).

Medicinal Use of Natural Resource: A Case Study in Diadema, São Paulo - Brazil 485

had been targets of previous pharmacological studies. To determine the origin of each plant species, was consulted the Dictionary of Useful Plants: exotic and native (Pio Corrêa, 1926).

During the field work, the authors made an effort to understand the dynamics of use for each resource and classified them into the following four categories: maintenance of use (resource used for the same purpose in the migrant's city of origin and in Diadema), replacement (resources that were replaced when migrants arrived in Diadema because the original product was not available in Diadema or was less effective than the new resource), incorporation (resources used for the first time in Diadema to treat diseases common to larger cities, such as hypertension, diabetes and anxiety, which were not common in their homeland), and finally discontinued use (resources that are no longer used in Diadema,

The level of homogeneity between plant information provided by different migrants was calculated using the Informants' Consensus Factor, Fic (Trotter & Logan, 1986). This term is calculated as Fic = Nur - Nt /(Nur - 1), where Nur is the number of use reports from informants for a particular plant-usage category and Nt is the number of taxa or species used for that plant usage category across all informants. Values range between 0 and 1, with 1 indicating the highest level of informant consent. For instance, if certain taxa are consistently used by informants, then a high degree of consensus is reached and medicinal

Despite the fact that Diadema is composed by thousands of migrants, the authors could observed that only a few had retained traditional knowledge pertaining to medicinal plants and animals. During this time the authors observed that in many cases, this knowledge has fallen into disuse because of: a) a cultural adaptation to the new city, b) the ease of conventional medical care, c) forest degradation, which restricts use of local plants and animals, furthermore d) many migrants have shown concern to participate in the study, since in the past they suffered persecution from government agencies and physicians, who eventually restrained their medical practice. The five selected interviewees migrated from northeast and southeast Brazil and established themselves in Diadema in the 1940s. Three were born in the northeast: two in Pernambuco state (coded as PE1 and PE2) and one in Sergipe state (SE1). The two remaining migrants were born in the southeast: one in Minas Gerais state (MG1) and one in inland São Paulo state (SP1) (Figure 2). All interviewees were Catholic, married and retired, with the exception of PE1 and PE2 who sell medicinal plants. Their average age was approximately 68 years old (ranging from 53 to 80 years old), and their level of education was semi-illiterate to illiterate. They learned about the medicinal uses of plants and animals from their parents and grandparents (Brazilian natives, European and African descendants) in their homelands. All interviewees arrived in the city of

#### **4. Ethnopharmacological survey among migrants living in the Southeast Atlantic Forest of Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil – A case of study (Adapted of Garcia et al., 2010)**

#### **4.1 Methodology**

#### **4.1.1 Fieldwork**

One of the authors (D. Garcia) spent 14 months (September 2007 to November 2008) in the municipality of Diadema, São Paulo, SP, Brazil (23°41'10"S, 46°37'22"W), selecting, observing and interviewing migrants living in the Atlantic Forest remnants. Diadema is occupied by 394.266 inhabitants (IBGE, 2011), most of whom are migrants from other regions of Brazil. The Atlantic Forest remnants found in this city are rich in plants that are either native or introduced by the influence of those migrants present both in urban and rural areas. Migrants who had relevant knowledge regarding the use of plants and animals for medicinal purposes were selected for interviews following the purposive sampling method (Bernard, 1988). After identifying potential interviewees, the researcher visited them to determine whether they did indeed possess knowledge on medicinal plants and whether they wanted to take part in this study. This ethnopharmacological study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP's Ethics Committee on Research 1969/07) and Conselho de Gestão do Patrimônio Genético (No. 02000.001 049/2008-71). The interviewees also signed consent forms granting permission to access their knowledge and collect botanical and zoological material. Personal and ethnopharmacological data from the interviewees were obtained through informal and semistructured interviews (Bernard, 1988) that addressed the following topics: personal details and migration history (name, sex, age, religion, marital status, place of birth, migration, main occupation, grade of schooling) as well as ethnopharmacology (name of natural resource, use, part used, formula, route of administration, contraindications, dosages, restrictions of use). Each medicinal plant was collected in the presence of the person who described it during the interviews, in accordance with the methods suggested by Lipp (1989). The plants' scientific names were determined by specialists from the Instituto de Botânica do Estado de São Paulo (IB), and vouchers were deposited at the Herbário Municipal de São Paulo (PMSP). The animals collected were placed in glass vials containing 70% ethyl alcohol, and their subsequent identification and deposit were performed by zoologists from the Museum of Zoology, Universidade de São Paulo (MZUSP) and the Bioscience Institute from Universidade de São Paulo (IB-USP). When interviewees cited plants and animals that were used only in their cities of origin, i.e., not available in Diadema, photos from the literature and other information (e.g., popular name, habits and habitat) were used to identify them to at least the genus level. These organisms are marked with asterisks throughout the text and in Table 1. The Herpetofauna of the Northeast Atlantic Forest (Freitas & Silva, 2005) and The Herpetofauna of Caatingas and Altitudes Areas of the Brazilian Northeast (Freitas & Silva, 2007) were used as identification guides. For plants, the authors also consulted Medicinal Plants in Brazil - Native and Exotic (Lorenzi & Matos, 2008). Retracted Retracted

#### **4.1.2 Database survey**

For the plants and animals identified to the species level, the authors searched the bibliographic databases PUBMED (2011) and SCIFINDER (2011) to determine whether they had been targets of previous pharmacological studies. To determine the origin of each plant species, was consulted the Dictionary of Useful Plants: exotic and native (Pio Corrêa, 1926).

## **4.1.3 Dynamics of use**

484 Pharmacology

One of the authors (D. Garcia) spent 14 months (September 2007 to November 2008) in the municipality of Diadema, São Paulo, SP, Brazil (23°41'10"S, 46°37'22"W), selecting, observing and interviewing migrants living in the Atlantic Forest remnants. Diadema is occupied by 394.266 inhabitants (IBGE, 2011), most of whom are migrants from other regions of Brazil. The Atlantic Forest remnants found in this city are rich in plants that are either native or introduced by the influence of those migrants present both in urban and rural areas. Migrants who had relevant knowledge regarding the use of plants and animals for medicinal purposes were selected for interviews following the purposive sampling method (Bernard, 1988). After identifying potential interviewees, the researcher visited them to determine whether they did indeed possess knowledge on medicinal plants and whether they wanted to take part in this study. This ethnopharmacological study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP's Ethics Committee on Research 1969/07) and Conselho de Gestão do Patrimônio Genético (No. 02000.001 049/2008-71). The interviewees also signed consent forms granting permission to access their knowledge and collect botanical and zoological material. Personal and ethnopharmacological data from the interviewees were obtained through informal and semistructured interviews (Bernard, 1988) that addressed the following topics: personal details and migration history (name, sex, age, religion, marital status, place of birth, migration, main occupation, grade of schooling) as well as ethnopharmacology (name of natural resource, use, part used, formula, route of administration, contraindications, dosages, restrictions of use). Each medicinal plant was collected in the presence of the person who described it during the interviews, in accordance with the methods suggested by Lipp (1989). The plants' scientific names were determined by specialists from the Instituto de Botânica do Estado de São Paulo (IB), and vouchers were deposited at the Herbário Municipal de São Paulo (PMSP). The animals collected were placed in glass vials containing 70% ethyl alcohol, and their subsequent identification and deposit were performed by zoologists from the Museum of Zoology, Universidade de São Paulo (MZUSP) and the Bioscience Institute from Universidade de São Paulo (IB-USP). When interviewees cited plants and animals that were used only in their cities of origin, i.e., not available in Diadema, photos from the literature and other information (e.g., popular name, habits and habitat) were used to identify them to at least the genus level. These organisms are marked with asterisks throughout the text and in Table 1. The Herpetofauna of the Northeast Atlantic Forest (Freitas & Silva, 2005) and The Herpetofauna of Caatingas and Altitudes Areas of the Brazilian Northeast (Freitas & Silva, 2007) were used as identification guides. For plants, the authors also consulted Medicinal Plants in Brazil - Native and Exotic

For the plants and animals identified to the species level, the authors searched the bibliographic databases PUBMED (2011) and SCIFINDER (2011) to determine whether they

**4. Ethnopharmacological survey among migrants living in the Southeast Atlantic Forest of Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil – A case of study (Adapted of** 

**Garcia et al., 2010)** 

(Lorenzi & Matos, 2008).

**4.1.2 Database survey** 

**4.1 Methodology 4.1.1 Fieldwork** 

During the field work, the authors made an effort to understand the dynamics of use for each resource and classified them into the following four categories: maintenance of use (resource used for the same purpose in the migrant's city of origin and in Diadema), replacement (resources that were replaced when migrants arrived in Diadema because the original product was not available in Diadema or was less effective than the new resource), incorporation (resources used for the first time in Diadema to treat diseases common to larger cities, such as hypertension, diabetes and anxiety, which were not common in their homeland), and finally discontinued use (resources that are no longer used in Diadema, usually because they are not available). Retracted

#### **4.1.4 Data analysis**

The level of homogeneity between plant information provided by different migrants was calculated using the Informants' Consensus Factor, Fic (Trotter & Logan, 1986). This term is calculated as Fic = Nur - Nt /(Nur - 1), where Nur is the number of use reports from informants for a particular plant-usage category and Nt is the number of taxa or species used for that plant usage category across all informants. Values range between 0 and 1, with 1 indicating the highest level of informant consent. For instance, if certain taxa are consistently used by informants, then a high degree of consensus is reached and medicinal traditions are viewed as well-defined (Heinrich, 2000).

#### **4.2 Results and discussion**

#### **4.2.1 Migrant interviews**

Despite the fact that Diadema is composed by thousands of migrants, the authors could observed that only a few had retained traditional knowledge pertaining to medicinal plants and animals. During this time the authors observed that in many cases, this knowledge has fallen into disuse because of: a) a cultural adaptation to the new city, b) the ease of conventional medical care, c) forest degradation, which restricts use of local plants and animals, furthermore d) many migrants have shown concern to participate in the study, since in the past they suffered persecution from government agencies and physicians, who eventually restrained their medical practice. The five selected interviewees migrated from northeast and southeast Brazil and established themselves in Diadema in the 1940s. Three were born in the northeast: two in Pernambuco state (coded as PE1 and PE2) and one in Sergipe state (SE1). The two remaining migrants were born in the southeast: one in Minas Gerais state (MG1) and one in inland São Paulo state (SP1) (Figure 2). All interviewees were Catholic, married and retired, with the exception of PE1 and PE2 who sell medicinal plants. Their average age was approximately 68 years old (ranging from 53 to 80 years old), and their level of education was semi-illiterate to illiterate. They learned about the medicinal uses of plants and animals from their parents and grandparents (Brazilian natives, European and African descendants) in their homelands. All interviewees arrived in the city of Retracted

The Influence of Displacement by Human Groups Among Regions in the

observed during this study.

**4.2.3 Maintenance of use** 

**4.2.4 Incorporation of use** 

and uses of plants.

Labill.) and "novalgina" (*Achillea millefolium* L.).

*simsii* Planch.), detailing the risks associated with their consumption.

Medicinal Use of Natural Resource: A Case Study in Diadema, São Paulo - Brazil 487

pattern has been detected in other countries, such as Mexico (Díaz, 1977). One factor that may explain the common use of this taxonomic family is the large number of species belonging to it - about 20,000 (Woodland, 1997). Asteraceae also has a wide geographical distribution, both in Brazil and throughout the world (Schultes & Raffaulf, 1990), which facilitates its use by various cultures. From the 65 species identified, it was observed that 33 are native to Brazil while the other 32 are exotic, demonstrating the great floral diversity of the region, which was influenced by European and African people during the civilizing process in Brazil. Furthermore, of the 78 specimens recorded, 54% (42) are spontaneous or were already available in Diadema when interviewees arrived there, while 46% (36) were grown by the migrants, acquired in free markets, or brought from other regions of the country during migration. Below, the authors describe the four 'dynamics of use' categories

According to the interviewees, 68 of the 78 specimens cited in the present study, were used in their homelands (highlighted with □ in Table 1). The maintenance of their uses was possible since most of them were available in Diadema, though some were brought from their homelands. SE1 brought four plants from Aquidabã - Sergipe state, for pain relief because they are not available or are more potent than the ones found in Diadema: "bálsamo" (*Sedum* sp.), "anador" (*Alternanthera* sp.), "eucalipto/vick" (*Eucalyptus globulus*

Fourteen of the 78 specimens listed in Table 1 came to be used by migrants when they arrived in Diadema (highlighted with Δ in Table 1). These incorporations occurred in several ways: through information given by neighbours; through local media, e.g., television, radio, magazines; or through personal efforts, guided by plant organoleptic properties or even by the theory of signatures. This theory, formulated by Paracelsus (XVI century), assumes that characteristics and virtues of herbs can be recognised by their external appearance or "signature" (picture, shape, colour). Finally, observing the relationship between animals and plants can be a valuable guide. PE1 noted that dogs consume "sete-sangria" (*Cuphea carthagenensis* (Jacq.) J. F. Macbr.) when they have diarrhoea; and because it seemed to alleviate their symptoms, he started to use this plant for the same purpose. The migrants incorporated several plants after their arrival in Diadema to treat typical diseases of larger cities: "cipó-cruz" (*Serjania* sp.) to combat high cholesterol; and "guanxuma" (*Sida rhombifolia* L.) and "guiné" (*Petiveria alliaceae* L.) for anxiety. Also included in this category was knowledge concerning local toxic plants, e. g., alamanda-amarela (*Allamanda cathartica* L.) and azaléia (*Rhododendron* 

Similar results were recorded by Volpato et al. (2009), where the use of some plants have been incorporated in Cuban pharmacopoeia by the Haitians. This occurred, according to the authors, as a result of factors such as cultural contact and exchange of information between migrants and host, and personal experimentation or imitation of local practices by migrants. The same authors conclude that Haitians contributed to what is today considered as traditional Cuban medicine by introducing into the dominant Cuban community practices

Diadema as adults, and some had migrated through different regions of Brazil, accumulating knowledge on natural resources from human and biological sources. In Diadema, they acquired knowledge from neighbours, books, media (radio, television, magazines), and personal experiences.

#### **4.2.2 Plants: Dynamics of use**

The migrants described their knowledge of 85 plant specimens. As can be seen in Table 1, 78 of them were available in Diadema and were collected, resulting in 65 plant species, the remaining 13 could only be identified to the generic level. The plants belong to 37 taxonomic families, with Asteraceae (16 species), Lamiaceae (8) and Euphorbiaceae (7) as the most common. Previous studies have shown that Asteraceae species are the group most commonly reported to have potential pharmacological properties, not only in the Atlantic Forest (Almeida & Albuquerque, 2002; Begossi et al., 1993; Di Stasi et al., 2002) but also in other Brazilian biomes such as the Amazon Forest (Rodrigues, 2006) the pantanal wetlands (Rodrigues & Carlini, 2004) and the cerrado savannahs (Rodrigues & Carlini, 2005). In a review focusing on plants with possible action/ effects on the central nervous system that were indicated by 26 Brazilian indigenous peoples occupying different Brazilian biomes (Rodrigues et al., 2005), Asteraceae was the second most commonly cited family. The same Retracted

Fig. 2. Location of the Municipality of Diadema, in São Paulo state, southeastern Brazil (black square). Interviewees' migration from their cities of origin to Diadema, being PE (Pernambuco state), SE (Sergipe), MG (Minas Gerais) and SP (São Paulo), and the distance of the displacement (in Km) in each case (adapted of Garcia et al., 2010).

pattern has been detected in other countries, such as Mexico (Díaz, 1977). One factor that may explain the common use of this taxonomic family is the large number of species belonging to it - about 20,000 (Woodland, 1997). Asteraceae also has a wide geographical distribution, both in Brazil and throughout the world (Schultes & Raffaulf, 1990), which facilitates its use by various cultures. From the 65 species identified, it was observed that 33 are native to Brazil while the other 32 are exotic, demonstrating the great floral diversity of the region, which was influenced by European and African people during the civilizing process in Brazil. Furthermore, of the 78 specimens recorded, 54% (42) are spontaneous or were already available in Diadema when interviewees arrived there, while 46% (36) were grown by the migrants, acquired in free markets, or brought from other regions of the country during migration. Below, the authors describe the four 'dynamics of use' categories observed during this study. Retracted
