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Medicinal plants serve as a natural source of herbal medicine employed in treating numerous diseases within local communities across various countries. They also constitute the raw ingredient for the pharmaceutical industry. This study was conducted during year 2020-2021 to gather the native indigenous knowledge about therapeutic uses of medicinal plants in Mandi Bahauddin, District Gujrat, Punjab, Pakistan. Ethnomedicinal information was collected using surveys and personal interviews with local inhabitants, involving 30 males and 20 females across a wide range of age groups ranging from 25 to 80 years. The participants also included traditional practitioners of herbal medicines, known as 'tabibs' and 'hakims. Household and market surveys were conducted in the rural areas of Mandi Bahauddin, Phalia and Malikwal for collection of socioeconomic and ethnic information of different plant species. Plant specimens underwent pressing, drying, and mounting onto herbarium sheets. The identification process was conducted for all gathered samples. In this research study, documentation was carried out for 50 plant species distributed across 27 families. These species arranged with scientific names, common names, family names, plant part used and ethnopharmacological applications. There were 20-herbs, 13-shrubs and 18 tree species documented on the basis of their importance and medicinal uses. Frequently utilized plant components included were fruits, leaves, roots, barks, seeds, and sometimes whole plant. There was a total of 50 plants out of which 20 plants were used through the preparation of decoction, 17 plants in the powder form and 10 plants used through infusion. 80% plants used to cure cough, asthma, fever, influenza, diabetes and liver diseases. 60% plants used to cure digestive diseases, diarrhea, cancer, inflammation, stomachache and dysentery. About 30% plants used to cure cardiovascular diseases and ulcers. The purpose of this study is to recognize wild plants gathered for medicinal purposes by the local residents of Mandi Bahauddin and to document the common names and therapeutic uses associated with these plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper presents the first quantitative ethnobotanical study of the flora in Toli Peer National Park of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan. Being a remote area, there is a strong dependence by local people on ethnobotanical practices. Thus, we attempted to record the folk uses of the native plants of the area with a view to acknowledging and documenting the ethnobotanical knowledge. The aims of the study were to compile an inventory of the medicinal plants in the study area and to record the methods by which herbal drugs were prepared and administered. Materials and methods: Information on the therapeutic properties of medicinal plants was collected from 64 local inhabitants and herbalists using open ended and semi-structured questionnaires over the period Aug 2013-Jul 2014. The data were recorded into a synoptic table comprising an ethnobotanical inventory of plants, the parts used, therapeutic indications and modes of application or administration. Different ethnobotanical indices i.e. relative frequencies of citation (RFC), relative importance (RI), use value (UV) and informant consensus factor (Fic), were calculated for each of the recorded medicinal plants. In addition, a correlation analysis was performed using SPSS ver. 16 to check the level of association between use value and relative frequency of citation. Results: A total of 121 species of medicinal plants belonging to 57 families and 98 genera were recorded. The study area was dominated by herbaceous species (48%) with leaves (41%) as the most exploited plant part. The Lamiaceae and Rosaceae (9% each) were the dominant families in the study area. Among different methods of preparation, the most frequently used method was decoction (26 species) of different plant parts followed by use as juice and powder (24 species each), paste (22 species), chewing (16 species), extract (11 species), infusion (10 species) and poultice (8 species). The maximum Informant consensus factor (Fic) value was for gastro-intestinal, parasitic and hepatobiliary complaints (0.90). Berberis lycium Ajuga bracteosa, Prunella vulgaris, Adiantum capillus-veneris, Desmodium polycarpum, Pinus roxburgii, Albizia lebbeck, Cedrella serrata, Rosa brunonii, Punica granatum, Jasminum mesnyi and Zanthoxylum armatum were the most valuable plants with the highest UV, RFC and relative importance values. The Pearson correlation coefficient between UV and RFC (0.881) reflects a significant positive correlation between the use value and relative frequency of citation. The coefficient of determination indicated that 77% of the variability in UV could be explained in terms of RFC. Conclusion: Systematic documentation of the medicinal plants in the Toli Peer National Park shows that the area is rich in plants with ethnomedicinal value and that the inhabitants of the area have significant knowledge about the use of such plants with herbal drugs commonly used to cure infirmities. The results of this study indicate that carrying out subsequent pharmacological and phytochemical investigations in this part of Pakistan could lead to new drug discoveries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]