Contributions to the flora of Myanmar from 2000 to 2019

Contributions to the Flora of Tropical East Africa

Tropical East Africa (TEA) is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots on the planet. Its rich flora diversity and inventory have been clearly recognized after the publication of the last volume of the Flora of Tropical East Africa (FTEA) in 2012. However, many new and newly recorded taxa have been named and documented since the publication of the first volume of FTEA in 1952. In this study, we comprehensively compiled new taxa and new records by reviewing the literature on the taxonomic contributions of vascular plants in TEA from 1952 to 2022. Our list includes 444 new and newly recorded species belonging to 81 families and 218 genera. Among these taxa, 94.59% of the plants are endemic to TEA and 48.42% are herbs. Additionally, members of Rubiaceae and Aloe are the most numerous family and genus respectively. These new taxa are unevenly distributed in TEA, but are found mainly in areas of high species richness, such as coastal, central and western areas of Kenya, central and southeastern Tanzania. This study offers summative assessment of the newly recorded flora inventory in TEA and provides recommendations for future research on plant diversity survey and conservation.

Diversity of medicinal plants and their therapeutic usages of Kachin people (Jinghpaw) in the central part of Kachin State, Myanmar

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The traditional medical system plays a major role in healthcare in Kachin State, Myanmar, where long-term political instability persists and conventional healthcare facilities are inadequate. A knowledge of the traditional medicinal plants therefore benefits the Kachin people, yet documentation and records of the uses of these plants are rare. In this study, we attempt to answer the questions on what medicinal plants and how they are used by the Kachin people.

AIM OF THE STUDY

We aimed to document knowledge of the traditional medicinal plants and to identify those most frequently used by the Kachin people.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Eighty-two informants from eight villages in three townships were interviewed, and their knowledge of medicinal plants was recorded. The reported ailments were classified to the standard categories of the International Classification of Primary Care-2 (ICPC-2) system. Use reports (UR) were employed to evaluate the knowledge consensus of the informants.

RESULTS

We recorded a total of 117 species used as medicinal plants, of which 22 are newly recorded medicinal plant species for Myanmar. The plants belonged to 103 genera in 52 families, and were used to treat a total of 72 ailments from 17 ICPC-2 disease categories. Fabaceae and Lamiaceae were the most highly represented families of medicinal plants, with eleven and eight species used, respectively. The most cited species based on URs were Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Hook.f. & Thomson (URs = 39), Oroxylum indicum (L.) Kurz (URs = 28), Aquilaria malaccensis Lam. (URs = 26), Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob. (URs = 24), and Chloranthus elatior Link. (URs = 22). Digestive system disorder was the most prevalent disease category, and was treated with 47 different medicinal plants (URs = 142). Leaves were the most commonly used plant part; decoction was the dominant method of preparation; and oral consumption was the most frequent method of administration.

CONCLUSION

Our study documented a list of 117 medicinal plants and their uses in traditional medicine based on the local knowledge of the Kachin people. The study also identified the five most frequently cited species and found that the plants investigated are used to treat a total of 72 diseases. The 642 therapeutic reports we collected showcase a rich and diverse living knowledge of medicinal plant use by the Kachin people. Moreover, we present 22 new medicinal records, enriching the list of known medicinal plants in Myanmar. This exploratory study has enabled us to assemble the local knowledge of the Kachin people into solid dataset that will allow further scientific validation and will potentially contribute to better integration of medicinal plants into the healthcare provision for Kachin people in Myanmar.

Who will name new plant species? Temporal change in the origins of taxonomists in China

Discovery rates of new plant species need to be accelerated because many species will be extinct before they are formally described. Current studies have focused on where new species may occur and their characteristics. However, who will actually discover and describe these new species has received limited attention. Here, we used 31 576 vascular plant species distributed and described in China as a case study to explore the temporal patterns of the nationalities of the taxonomists. We found that most recently described species are endemic species, and there has been an increasing proportion of species descriptions by resident Chinese taxonomists over time. The proportion of species described by resident taxonomists reached an average of 80.8% between 1977 and 2018. By contrast, species discoveries by non-resident experts, often non-endemic species, showed signs of levelling off. Our study underscores an urgent need for training of, support for and collaboration with resident taxonomists in megadiverse countries with a high potential of discovering undescribed plant species.

New contributions to Goodyerinae and Dendrobiinae (Orchidaceae) in the flora of China

Eight new species from China, Cheirostylis chuxiongensis, C. yei, Myrmechis lingulata, M. longii, Bulbophyllum ximaense, B. xizangense, B. retusum and B. pulcherissimum, are described and illustrated. Cheirostylis chuxiongensis differs from C. thailandica by having 5-9 irregular and papillae-like calli on each side in the sac of the lip, epichile with entire lobes, petals narrowly obliquely obovate and an apex that is not recurved. Cheirostylis yei is easily distinguished from its relatives similar by having a long stem, pubescent ovary and sepals, epichile lobes with irregular and undulate margins, a subquadrate callus without teeth in the saccate hypochile. Myrmechis lingulata differs from M. chinensis by having a simple and lanceolate to ligulate lip, glabrous bracts and ovary, oblique and narrowly ovate petals. Myrmechis longii differs from M. pumila by having white-veined leaves, oblong-lanceolate epichile lobes, and viscidium attached to the middle of the caudicle. Bulbophyllum ximaense is easily distinguished from its relatives similar by having distant pseudobulbs, shorter scape, an inflorescence with 9-16 orange-red flowers, shorter lateral sepals with a long acuminate apex, incurved and tubular apical margins, a papillate lip disk and triangular-subulate stelidia. Bulbophyllum xizangense is easily distinguished from its relatives similar by having narrow lanceolate leaves, shorter inflorescence with 1-3 greenish-yellow flowers, falcate-ovoid lateral sepals, a lip with small lateral lobes and 3 keels at the base. Bulbophyllum retusum differs from B. spathulatum by having shorter inflorescence, peduncles with 2 tubular sheaths, dorsal sepals with a retuse apex, lateral sepals with lower edges that are connate to each other and free and divergent toward the apex, obovate petals with an acute or slightly retuse apex. Bulbophyllum pulcherissimum differs from B. lopalanthum by its 5-veined dorsal sepal, ovate-lanceolate lateral sepals, obliquely ovate-oblong petal, erose-toothed margins and obovate lip with a large, oblong basal callus, and an obtuse base. In addition, three species (Bulbophyllum frostii, B. raskotii and B. nematocaulon) are reported for the first time in China.