Ethnobotanical applications of medicinal plants of family Asteraceae in Allah Wali Lake Gutumsar, District Astore, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan

Abstract

Background: The current research was conducted in Allah Wali Lake Gutumsar district Astore, Pakistan. The research aims to document the local indigenous knowledge for effective treatments of diverse ailments from the family Asteraceae.

Methods: During the fieldwork in the study site, ethnobotanical data was collected through free listings and interviews involving 63 local key informants. To measure the cultural significance of collected flora, we employed indices; Relative Frequency Citation, Use Value, Fidelity Level, Informant Consensus Factor Index and Pearson’s correlation coefficient.

Results: 13 medicinal plant species from the Asteraceae family in the region are documented, which belong to 10 genera and were utilized for diverse ailment treatments. In the habit, herbs (92%) were dominant, among the plant parts, aerial part (46%) were prevalently used in traditional medicine.  Traditional practices heavily rely on decoctions (56%) to address issues such as digestive problems, fever, cold, and cough. Taraxacum officinale stands out with the highest RFC (0.889), UV (0.952), FL (100%), and ICF for dermatitis, diuretic, dysentery, and fever (1), highlighting its prevalence and significance in the region. The relationship between RFC and UV shows, strong correlation coefficient r (0.675*) with p value is less than 0.05 (< 0.011), whereas the (r2) value of (0.427).

Conclusions: The locals of the study area depend on medicinal plants for healthcare, highlighting rich indigenous knowledge. This research commences the recording of indigenous knowledge, endorsing responsible resource management. Subsequent studies seek to unveil biodiversity, sustainable use of medicinal plants, and conservation management in the region.

Keywords: Allah Wali Lake, Asteraceae, Ethnobotany, Indigenous knowledge, Medicinal plants