Plants from the Brazilian Traditional Medicine: species from the books of the Polish physician Piotr Czerniewicz (Pedro Luiz Napoleão Chernoviz, 1812–1881)

Abstract

The Brazilian flora is very rich in medicinal plants, and much information about the traditional use of the Brazilian plants is only available from early literature and we are facing a rapid process of loss of biodiversity. To retrieve data about useful plants registered in the books of the Polish physicist P.L.N. Chernoviz, who lived in Brazil for 15 years in the 19th century. The aim is to improve our knowledge about Brazilian plants, and to ensure the benefits of sharing it with potential users. Data about Brazilian plants were obtained from six editions of the book Formulary and Medical Guide (Formulário e Guia Médico), published in 1864, 1874, 1888, 1892, 1897 and 1920. All this information was then organized in boxes, and correlated with pharmacological studies from PubMed and Lilacs. A total of 238 species were recorded and 117 different traditional uses were registered for the plants. The most common uses were to treat general skin diseases and intermittent fevers, as purgative, diuretics and andidiarrheal. From the total, only 61 species (25.6%) have been to date subject to pharmacological studies and had their activities confirmed. Chernoviz books represent an important source of data about plants used in traditional medicine of Brazil. Their records were collected at a time when Brazil's native vegetation was still largely intact, and traditional medicine was practiced based on native plants. We argue that these plants must be prioritized in development of medicines, submitting them to clinical studies or by considering their traditionality, as established by WHO. Strategies for the protection of the traditional knowledge are also necessary.

Keywords:
Historical records; Useful plants; Medicinal plants; 19 century

Introduction

Since 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) has been stimulating the rescue of data from plants used in ancient medical practice, since they are considered potentially useful in the development of new drugs (WHO, 2002). The American plants were widely used long before the arrival of the Europeans in the continent in the 15th century, and besides being one of the richest countries in biodiversity, Brazil is also one of the most diverse in terms of Amerindian culture (Neves, 2006; Forzza et al., 2012). However, both plants and traditional knowledge are under heavy threaten due to the continued destruction of the native ecosystems, as a consequence of the successive economic cycles along the five centuries of increasing human occupancy. In fact, today only 7% of the Atlantic Forest survives, and the Cerrado and Caatinga are also in a rapid process of destruction (Giulietti et al., 2005). This situation highlights the necessity to promote the appropriate use and conservation of useful species from the Brazilian biodiversity, as suggested by the WHO.

Historical research can play an important role in recovering valuable ethnopharmacological data regarding the use of plants (Heinrich et al., 2006; Medeiros, 2008). Over the last ten years, our research group has concentrated efforts to recover informations about useful Brazilian plants in books and other documents from the past centuries. Most registers about Brazilian plants have been recovered from works of Europeans that travelled or lived in the country in the 19th century. Hundreds of species of medicinal plants used in Brazil were registered by these scientists (Brandão et al., 2008; Breitbach et al., 2013; Fagg et al., 2015). Among the Europeans that lived in Brazil in this period is the Polish physicist Piotr Czerniewicz (1812–1881) or Pedro Luiz Napoleão Chernoviz, as he was known in Brazil.

Chernoviz was born in Lukov, but was forced to leave the country while still a medical student at the University of Warsaw in 1831, due to his involvement in an uprising against the Russians. In Montpellier, he continued his studies and in 1837 he was awarded by the French government with the medal of merit, due to his courageous participation in a cholera epidemy (Guimarães, 2005). Chernoviz arrived in Rio de Janeiro in the early 1840s to work as a medical doctor. He returned to France in 1855 and died in 1881.

A year after his arrived in Brazil, Chernoviz wrote the "Formulary and Medical Guide" (Formulário e Guia Médico) directed to physicists, a book that achieved 19 editions during his life, being published by his son afterwards. In 1842 he published the "Dictionary of Popular Medicine" (Dicionário de Medicina Popular), which had a more accessible language to be used by the population. Both books were a striking success in Brazil, especially the "Dictionary" that was widely used in the inner parts of the country, where professional medical assistance was virtually nonexistent. Both books present a good description about the medical techniques at the time but more importantly, a rich register of the traditional uses of Brazilian plants. The aim of this study was to retrieve data about useful Brazilian plants in six editions of the book Formulary and Medical Guide, and discuss about the possibility of their current use.

Methods

Survey of Chernoviz books

Data on the use of native plants were carefully collected from the following editions of the book Formulary and Medical Guide: 6th edition (1864), 9th edition (1874), 13th (1888), 15th (1892), 16th (1897) and 19th (1920). The editions of 1864, 1874 and 1892 were studied in the Libraries of Medicine and Pharmacy School of University of Paris. The edition of 1888 was consulted in the Library of the Museum of Natural History, also in Paris. The others (1897 and 1920) were consulted in the Natural History Museum and Botanical Gardens and the Pharmacy Faculty of the Federal University of Minas Gerais, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Only the species referred as "plant from Brazil" by the author were considered. Box 1 shows the species cited by Chernoviz that were submitted to pharmacological studies correlated with the traditional uses. In Box 2 are listed the other species. Different popular names were attributed by the author for the plants in the subsequent editions, but in this study we have considered only those names from the last edition, published in 1920, considering the most complete. Only the current scientific names, obtained by consulting the website www.floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br, from the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden, were included in the Boxes.

Box 1
Plants from the Formulary and Medical Guide, their uses, first edition of publication and recent studies correlated with the traditional uses

Family/scientific name	Popular name	Part/indication	Edition	Recent studies correlated with use
Amaranthaceae
Chenopodium ambrosioides L.e,f	herva-de-santa-maria	Vermifuge	1864	Amoebicidal (Avila-Blanco et al., 2014), acaricidal (Kouam et al., 2015), antischistosomal (Kamel et al., 2011)
Anacardiaceae
Anacardium occidentale L.a,e,f	cajueiro, acaju	Lupus, acne, eczema, ulcers, psoriasis, leprosy	1874	Anti-inflammatory, wound healing (Olajide et al., 2004; Pawar et al., 2004)
Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi a,c,d,e,f	aroeira, corneiba	Leaves to treat ulcers, bark astringent, to treat leg oedemas	1864	Wound healing (Estevão et al., 2013), gastric ulcer (Santos et al., 2013)
Apocynaceae
Geissospermum vellosii Allemão	camará-de-bilro, camará-do-mato, pao-pereira, forquilha, pau-de-pente	Bark to treat intermittent fevers and tonic	1864	Antiplasmodial (Mbeunkui et al., 2012)
Aquifoliaceae
Ilex paraguariensis A. St.-Hil.c,d,e,f	mate, congonha	Stimulant, sudorific, digestivea	1874	Stimulant (Santos et al., 2015)
Aristolochiaceae
Aristolochia trilobata L.b	milhomens, jarrinha	Lack of appetite, fevers, skin ulcers	1864	Topical antiinflamatory (Sosa et al., 2002); antibacterial (Camporese et al., 2003)
Asteraceae
Acanthospermum australe (Loefl.) Kuntzee	picão-da-praia	Tonic, diuretic, intermittent fevers	1864	Antimalarial (Carvalho et al., 1991; Carvalho and Krettli, 1991)
Ageratum conyzoides L.d,e	herva-de-são-joão, mentrasto	Stimulant, antidiarrheal, baths	1864	Antimicrobial (Singh et al., 2013; Adetutu et al., 2012)
Ayapana triplinervis (Vahl) R.M.King & H.Rob.e,f	japana, ayapana	Sudorific, wound healing	1864	Antibacterial (Gupta et al., 2002)
Baccharis genistelloides (Lam.) Pers.; Baccharis crispa Spreng.c,e,f	carqueja-amargosa	Tonic, febrifuge	1864	Anti-inflammatory (Nogueira et al., 2011; Paul et al., 2009)
Bidens pilosa L.e	picão, cuambú, guambú	Jaundice, ulcers	1874	Hepatoprotective (Kviecinski et al., 2011; Suzigan et al., 2009)
Chaptalia nutans (L.) Pol.	língua-de-vaca	Tonic, bronchitis, skin ulcers	1874	Antibacterial (Truiti et al., 2003); Antiinflamatory (Badilla et al., 1999)
P. sagittalis (Lam.) Cabrerae	quitoco, caculucage	Excitant, digestive	1864	Gastroprotective (Figueredo et al., 2011)
Sonchus oleraceus L.	serralhinha	Aperient, diuretic, jaundice, nephritis	1874	Anti-inflammatory (Vilela et al., 2010)
Bignoniaceae
Zeyheria montana Mart.	mandioquinha-do-campo, bolsa-de-pastor	Roots skin disease	1874	Antiproliferative (Seito et al., 2011), antiinflammatory, antinociceptive (Guenka et al., 2008)
Bixaceae
Bixa orellana L.a,b,e	urucu, orucu	Expectorant, bronchitis	1864	Antimicrobial (Fleischer et al., 2003; Castello et al., 2002), antihistamine (Yong et al., 2013)
Boraginaceae
Heliotropium indicum L.e	aguará-ciunhá-açú, jacuá-acanga	Skin ulcers and burns	1874	Wound healing (Dash and Murthy, 2011; Reddy et al., 2002)
Convolvulaceae
Operculina sp.e,f	batata-de-purga, ipú, jalapa, purga-de-amaro-leite, de cayapó, gentio, de joão-paes	Roots and seeds purgative	1874	Laxative (Paganotte et al., 2016; Michelin and Salgado, 2004)
Crassulaceae
Kalanchoe crenata (Andrews) Haw.c	sayão	Leaves as wound healing	1864	Antiinflamatory (Costa et al., 2006; Ibrahim et al., 2002)
Dilleniaceae
Curatella americana L.c,d,e	sambaiba	Barks astringent, skin ulcers	1874	Anti-ulcerogenic (Hiruma-Lima et al., 2009)
Euphorbiaceae
Joannesia princeps Vell.a,e	anda-açu, purga-de-gentio, paulistas, coco-de-purga, fruta-de-arara	Purgative	1864	Episodes of diarrhoea (Nishioka and Escalante, 1997)
Croton antisyphiliticus Mart.c,e	herva-mular, alcamphoreira, curraleira, pé-de-perdiz	Leaves sudorific, skin ulcers, stimulant	1874	Antiinflammatory (Reis et al., 2014)
Fabaceae
Bowdichia virgilioides Kunthe,f	sebipira, sucopira	Bark tonic and diaphoretic, to treat skin diseases	1874	Sport resistence (Santos et al., 2014), skin disease (Agra et al., 2013); antiinflamatory (Barros et al., 2010; Thomazzi et al., 2010)
Copaifera spp.a,d,e,f	copahiba	Astringent, blennorrhagy and other venereal diseases	1864	Wound healing (Paiva et al., 2002); Antiinflammatory (Vargas et al., 2015; Gelmini et al., 2013); Antimicrobial (Souza et al., 2011; Santos et al., 2008)
Dahlstedtia pinnata (Benth.) Malme	timbó boticário	Narcotic, liver disorders	1888	Sedative effect (Della Loggia et al., 1981)
Erythrina spp.f	mulungú, crista-de-galo	Bark sedative, seeds are poison	1874	Anxiolitic (Santos Rosa et al., 2012; Raupp et al., 2008)
Mimosa tenuiflora (Willd.) Poir.e	jurema	Narcotic, skin ulcers	1874	Wound healing (Zippel et al., 2009; Rivera-Arce et al., 2007)
Parapiptadenia rigida (Benth.) Brenane	angico	Bronchitis, liver disorders	1874	Antimicrobial, analgesic, anti-inflammatory (Araujo et al., 2014)
Stryphnodendron adstringens (Mart.) Covillec,e,f	barbatimão	Barks astringent, venereal disease, wound healing	1874	Wound healing (Pinto et al., 2015; Coelho et al., 2010), candidiasis (Morey et al., 2015; Luiz et al., 2015; Ishida et al., 2006)
Hypericaceae
Hypericum brasiliense Choisye,f	alecrim-bravo	Snake bites, aromatic baths	1920	Snake bites (Dal Belo et al., 2013)
Hypericum connatum Lam.e	orelha-de-gato	Astringent, throat inflammation	1874	Oral lesions (Fritz et al., 2007), antibacterial (Fratianni et al., 2013)
Lauraceae
Licaria puchury-major (Mart.) Kosterm.e	puchury, pichurim	Seeds stimulant, tonic, dyspepsy, leucorrhea	1874	Psycopharmacological (Carlini et al., 1983)
Ocotea odorifera (Vell.) Rohwere	pereiorá, casca-preciosa	Nervous system, leucorrhea, oedema, antidiarrheal	1874	Antifungal (Yamaguchi et al., 2011)
Lecythidaceae
Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl.e	castanha-do-maranhão, do pará	Barks jaundice, intermittent fever, renal calculi	1892	Antiplasmodial (Oliveira et al., 2015)
Loganiaceae
Spigelia laurina Cham. & Schltdl.e	espigelia, arapabaca	Vermifuge	1892	Anthelmintic (Ademola et al., 2007; Jegede et al., 2006)
Strychnos pseudoquina A.St.-Hil.c,d,e,f	quina-do-campo	Bark intermittent fevers	1874	Antimalarial (Andrade-Neto et al., 2003)
Loranthaceae
Struthanthus marginatus (Desr.) Blumef	herva-de-passarinho, enxerto-de-passarinho	Leaves to treat lung diseases	1888	Antimicobacterial (Leitão et al., 2013)
Malvaceae
Gossypium spp.e,f	algodoeiro	Wounds, erysipelas	1864	Wound healing (Annan and Houghton, 2008)
Meliaceae
Cabralea canjerana (Vell.) Mart.e,f	canjerana	Oil prevent insect bites, bark purgative and vomitive	1874	Insect repelent (Magrini et al., 2014)
Carapa guanensis Aubl.e	andiroba, carapa	Bark febrifuge and vermifuge, skin ulcers, insect repelent	1874	Antiplasmodial (Pereira et al. , 2014; Miranda Júnior et al. , 2012); vermifuge (Sarria et al., 2011); wound healing (Nayak et al., 2010, 2011); antimicrobial (Meccia et al., 2013); antiinflammatory (Henriques and Penido, 2014); insect repelent (Miot et al., 2004).
Guarea guidonia (L.) Sleumere	marinheiro, gitó	Bark purgative and vermifuge	1874	Antiprotozoal (Weniger et al., 2001)
Trichilia sp.e	marinheiro-de-folha-miúda	Roots to treat intermittent fevers	1874	Antimalarial (Castro et al., 1996)
Menispermaceae
Cissampelos ovalifolia DC.b,c,d,e	orelha-de-onça	Roots to treat snake bites and intermittent fevers	1874	Antimalarial (Fischer et al., 2004)
Myrtaceae
Psidium pomiferum L., P. guajava L.a,e,f	goiabeira	Leaves and barks antidiarrheal, leg oedema	1874	Antidiarrheal (Birdi et al., 2010, 2014; Ojewole et al., 2008); anti-inflammatory (Araujo et al., 2014; Jang et al., 2014)
Passiflorace
Passiflora maliformis L.c,e	maracujá	Convalescences	1920	Nutritive (Devi Ramaiya et al., 2013)
Phyllanthaceae
Phyllanthus microphyllus Kunth, P. niruri L.e	herva-pombinha	Diuretic	1864	Kidney troubles (Giribabu et al., 2014; Micali et al., 2006)
Phytolaccaeae
Petiveria alliacea L., Seguieria floribunda Benth.e	pau-de-alho, cipó, guararema, ybirarema.	Baths for rheumatic pain, hemorrhoid and dropsy	1874	Antinociceptive (Gomes et al., 2005), anti-inflammatory (Lopes-Martins et al., 2002)
Piperaceae
Piper mikanianum (Kunth) Steud., P. peltatum L., P. umbellatum L.a,b,c,e	periparoba, aguaxima, caapeba	Leaves rheumatisma and to treat ulcersa; roots as stomachic, sudorific, intermittent fevers	1864	Anti-inflammatory (Iwamoto et al., 2015; Roersch, 2010). Antimalarial (Rocha e Silva et al., 2015)
Plantaginaceae
Scoparia dulcis L.c	vassorinha, tupeiçava	Bronchitis	1874	Antiinflammatory (Tsai et al., 2011)
Rubiaceae
Carapichea ipecacuanha (Brot.) L.Anderssona,b,c,d,e	ipecacuanha, poaya, ipéca	Roots vomitivea, tonic, expectorant, antidiarrheal	1864	Several studies
Palicourea rigida Kunthc,d,e	herva-de-rato, don-bernardo, douradinha-de-campo, gritadeira	Poison	1874	Toxic (Cook et al., 2014)
Remijia ferruginea (A.St.-Hil.) DC.c,e,f	quina-da-serra, remijio, do campo	Barks bitter, to treat intermittent fevers	1864	Antimalarial (Andrade-Neto et al., 2003)
Rutaceae
Zanthoxylum fagara (L.) Sarg.c,e	coentrilho	Ear ache	1920	Antinociceptive, antiinflamatory (Villalba et al., 2007)
Sapindaceae
Paulinia cupana Kunthe,f	guaraná	Tonic, antidiarrheal	1864	Improves fatigue (Oliveira Campos et al., 2011)
Smilacaceae
Smilax salsaparrilha L., S. syphilitica Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd.e,f	salsaparrilha, japecanga, salsaparrilha-do-brasil	Antisyphilitic, skin disease, rheumatism and gout	1864	Several studies with Smilax spp.
Simaroubaceae
Simaba ferruginea A.St.-Hil.e	calunga	Dyspepsy, intermittent fevers	1874	Antiulcer (Souza-Almeida et al., 2011; Noldin et al., 2005)
Simarouba amara Aubl.e,f	simaruba	Bitter, febrifuge, antidiarrheal	1864	Hepatoprotective (Maranhão et al., 2014); malaria (Franssen et al., 1997); gastrointestinal disorders (Caceres et al., 1990)
Solanaceae
Cestrum parqui L’Hér.e	coerana	Leaves stimulant, carminative	1874	Psychosis (Siskind et al., 2014)
Physalis angulata L.c,e	camapú, juápóca	Ear ache, tonic, liver disorders	1874	Antinociceptive (Bastos et al., 2006; Choi and Hwang, 2003)
Solanum paniculatum L.a,b,c,e,f	jurubeba, juripeba, jupeba	Roots liver disorders, leaves as wound healing	1874	Digestive (Mesia-Vela et al., 2002)
Verbenaceae
Lantana camara L.e,f	camará, cambará	Baths for rheumatism	1874	Anti-inflammatory (Ghosh et al., 2010)

• Other historical references.
• ^a
  Cited by Piso (1648) (based in popular name).
• ^b
  Cited in Triaga Brasilica (Pereira et al., 1996).
• ^c
  Cited by Saint-Hilaire in his field book (Brandão et al., 2012).
• ^d
  Cited by Gardner in his manuscripts (Fagg et al., 2015).
• ^e
  Cited by Von Martius in Materiae Medicae (Martius, 1843).
• ^f
  Cited in 1st edition of Brazilian Official Pharmacopoeia (Brandão et al., 2009).

Box 2
Plants from the Formulary and Medical Guide, their uses and first editions of publication.

Family/scientific name	Popular name	Part/indication	Edition
Adoxaceae
Sambucus australis Cham. & Schltdl.e,f	sabugueiro-do-brasil	Flowers sudorific, roots purgative	1874
Amaranthaceae
Gomphrena arborescens L.f.c,d,e	paratudo	Bitter, aromatic, debility, diarrhoea, intermittent fevers, snake bites	1874
Apiaceae
Eryngium pristis Cham. & Schltdl.e	língua-de-tucano	Diuretic, throat inflammation	1874
Apocynaceae
Allamanda cathartica L.e	allamanda cathartica	Cathartic	1920
Hancornia speciosa Gomesa,c,d,e	mangabeira	Antituberculosis	1888
Himatanthus drasticus (Mart.) Plumelc,e	tiborna, raivosa	Juice drastic, intermittent fevers, jaundice	1874
Himatanthus phagedaenicus (Mart.) Woodsone	sucuúba, sebuu-uva	Juice vermifuge, skin ulcers	1874
Mandevilla alexicaca (Mart. ex Stadelm.) M.F.Salese	purga-do-campo	Roots purgative, jaundice, oedema of abdominal viscera	1874
Mandevilla longiflora (Desf.) Pichone	flor-de-babado, flor-de-babeiro	Roots purgative, used in veterinary	1874
Mandevilla tenuifolia (J.C.Mikan) Woodsond,e	purga-de-pastor	Roots purgative	1874
Odontadenia puncticulosa (Rich.) Pullee	cipó-cururú	Purgative	1874
Araceae
Caladium bicolor (Aiton) Vent.e	tinhorão, papagaio, bezerro	Leaves for treat tonsilitis	1864
Monstera adansonii Schotte	pau-de-cobra	Stimulant, narcotic, diuretic, purgative, emmenagogue	1897
Philodendron imbe Schott ex Kunthe	imbé, tracuans	Skin ulcers, roots purgative	1874
Pistia stratiotes L.e	flor-d’água, lentilha-d’água	Leaves to treat abcess and other skin diseases	1874
Araliaceae
Hydrocotyle bonariensis Lam.e	erva-capitão, erva-do-capitão, acariçoba	Diuretic, liver disorders	1874
Arecaceae
Copernicia prunifera (Mill.) H.E.Moored,f	carnaúba	Roots diuretic, syphilis, rheumatism	1892
Asparagaceae
Herreria salsaparrilha Mart.e	salsaparrilha, japecanga	Syphilis	1864
Asteraceae
Acmella oleracea (L.) R.K.Jansene	agrião-do-pará, jambú, nhambú, jambú-açú	Excitant, antiescorbutic	1864
Baccharis articulata (Lam.) Pers.e	carqueja-doce	Tonic, febrifuge and for aromatic baths	1874
Baccharis ochracea Spreng.e	erva-santa	Stomachic	1874
Baccharis spp.	alecrim-selvagem, alecrim-do-mato	Stimulant, aromatic baths	1864
Conoclinium prasiifolia (DC.) R.M.King & H.Rob.e	maria-preta	Stimulant	1874
Eclipta erecta L.e	tangaracá	Antidiarrheal	1874
Elephantopus mollis Kunthc,e	erva-collegio, fumo-bravo, erva-grossa, suçuáya	Leaves emollient, roots to treat bronchitis and fevers	1864
Mikania cordifolia (L.f.) Willd.e	erva-de-cobra	Snake bites	1874
Mikania guaco Kunth	guaco	Snake bites, cholera, respiratory diseases	1874
Mikania officinalis Mart.e	coração-de-jesú	Tonic, stimulant and intermittent fevers	1874
Sonchus levis Vell.	serralha	Desobstruent and depurative	1874
Begoniace
Begonia hirtela Linke	surucura	Astringent, antidiarrheal	1864
Begonia spp.e	azedinha-do-brejo, do-sapo	Astringent, antidiarrheal	1874
Bignoniaceae
Anemopaegma arvense (Vell.) Stellfeld ex de Souza	catuaba	Aphrodisiac	1920
Crescentia cujete L.e	cabacinha	Barks antidiarrheal, fruits laxative and expectorant	1897
Handroanthus serratifolius (Vahl) S.Grosee	ipeuva, cinco-folhas	Diuretic, depurative, to treat syphilis and rheumatism	1897
Jacaranda caroba (Vell.) DC.c,f	caroba	Leaves against syphilis	1874
Jacaranda procera (Willd.) Spreng.c	caroba	Antisyphilitic	1864
Boraginaceae
Echium plantagineum L.e	borracha-chimarona	Leaves emollient	1874
Heliotropium elongatum (Lehm.) I.M.Johnst.e	crista-de-galo	Respiratory disease	1874
Brassicaceae
Coronopus didymus (L.) Sm.e	mastruço	Antiescorbutic	1864
Bromeliaceae
Tillandsia usneoides (L.) L.d	barba-de-velho	Antihemorrhoidal	1888
Burseraceae
Protium icicariba (DC.) Marchanda,e,f	elemi	Skin diseases	1864
Cactaceae
Hylocereus setaceus (Salm-Dyck) R.Bauere	jamacurú, cumbéba, mandacarú, urumbéba	Fruits antiescorbutic, fevers, gastritis, pulmonar and skin disease	1874
Calophyllaceae
Kielmeyera speciosa A.St.-Hil.c,e	malva-do-campo, folha-santa, pinhão	Leaves emollient	1874
Cannaceae
Canna glauca L.e	imberi, albará, erva-dos-feridos	Rheumatic pain, wound healing and skin ulcers	1874
Caricaceae
Jacaratia spinosa (Aubl.) A.DC.	jaracatiá	Juice of fruit is vermifuge	1874
Celastraceae
Hippocratea volubilis L.	amendoeira-do-mato	Febrifuge, snake bites, expectorant	1920
Clusiaceae
Clusia insignis Mart.e	quapoy, aqui	Flowers for dry skin	1888
Combretaceae
Terminalia argentea Mart.e	caxaporra-do-gentio	Resin purgative	1874
Commelinaceae
Commelina erecta L.c,e	trapoeraba-rana, marianinha	Diuretics, dropsy, baths for rheumatism	1874
Tripogandra diuretica (Mart.) Handlose,f	trapoeraba	Diuretics, dropsy	1864
Convolvulaceae
Cuscuta umbellata Kunthc,e,f	cipó-de-chumbo	Juice as wound healing	1864
Costaceae
Costus spiralis (Jacq.) Roscoe	canna-do-brejo, macaco, matto, pacocaatinga, uacayá	Leucorrhea	1874
Cucurbitaceae
Cayaponia espelina (Silva Manso) Cogn.f	cerejeira-de-purga, espelina, tomba	Tonic, stomachic, purgative, emetic, liver disorders	1874
Cayaponia pilosa (Vell.) Cogn.e	cayapó, anna-pinta	Seeds purgative, depurative, skin disease, emmenagogue	1874
Cayaponia martiana (Cogn.) Cogn.e	tayuyá, abóbora-do-mato,	Fruits dropsy, purgative, amenorrhea, leaves to treat ulcers	1864
Fevillea cordifolia L.e	nhandiroba	stomachic, purgative, emetic, liver disorders	1874
Luffa operculata (L.) Cogn.e	bucha-dos-paulistas, purga-de-joão-paes, buchinha	Purgative	1874
Cyatheaceae
Cyathea microdonta (Desv.) Domine	rabo-de-bugio	Bronchitis	1874
Cyperaceae
Kyllinga odorata Vahle	capim-cheiroso, cidreira, marinho, acapé, jarapé	Carminative, antispasmodic, sudorific, diuretic	1874
Dilleniaceae
Davilla rugosa Poir.c,e,f	sambaibinha, cipó-de-carijó, cipó-de-caboclo	Leaves to treat oedema of legs and testicles	1874
Droseraceae
Drosera spp.c	drosera	Antitussigen	1920
Euphorbiaceae
Cnidoscolus urens (L.) Arthur var. urense	queimadeira, pinha	Impingen	1888
Croton campestris A.St.-Hil., C. fulvus Mart.c,e	velame-do-campo	Roots purgative	1874
Euphorbia hyssopifolia L.c,e	erva-de-santa-luzia	Eyes disorders, skin ulcers	1864
Euphorbia papillosa A.St.-Hil.e	maleiteira, leiteira	Purgative	1874
Euphorbia potentilloides Boiss.e	andorinha, erva-de-passarinho	Skin and eyes ulcers	1874
Hevea guianensis Aubl.e	borracha, cautchuc, goma elástica, seringa	Tuberculosis	1874
Hura crepitans L.e	assacú	Leprosy	1864
Jatropha elliptica (Pohl) Okenc,e	jalapão, tiú, raiz-de-lagarto	Roots purgative, jaundice, dropsy	1874
Fabaceae
Andira fraxinifolia Benth.a,c,e	angelim	Vermifuge	1864
Andira inermis (W.Wright) DC.	andira inermis	Bark vermifuge and purgative	1897
Arachis hypogaea L.e,f	mandobi, amendoim	Aphrodisiac	1874
Dipteryx odorata (Aubl.) Willd.e	cumarú, fava-tonka	Tonic	1874
Hymenaea stigonocarpa Mart., Hymenaea martiana Hayne, Hymenaea courbaril L.a,c,d,e	jatahy, jatahyba, jetehy, jatobá	Resin hemoptysis	1874
Leptolobium elegans Vogel	perobinha-do-campo	To treat epilepsy, antisyphilitic	1920
Myroxylon balsamum (L.) Harmsb,f	bálsamo-de-tolú	Bronchitis	1864
Pachyrrhizus erosus (L.) Urb.	jacatupé	Antidiarrheal, antihemorrhoidal	1888
Senna occidentalis (L.) Linkb,e,f	fedegoso, pajámariobá, pájomarioba	Roots diuretic, tonic, dropsy	1864
Senna rugosa (G.Don) H.S.Irwin & Barnebye	amendoirana, alcaçuz bravo, bico-de-corvo, boi gordo, paratudo	Vermifuge	1874
Gentianaceae
Calolisianthus pendulus (Mart.) Gilg, Calolisianthus amplissimus (Mart.) Gilge	genciana-brasileira	Roots febrifuge	1874
Deianira sp.c,d,e	centáurea-menor-do-brasil	Bitter flowers sell as centaurea in Europe	1892
Potalia resinifera Mart.e	anabi	Leaves astringent, to treat ophtalmia	1874
Humiriaceae
Endopleura uchi (Huber) Cuatrec.	uxi	Seeds hemostatic	1874
Hypericaceae
Vismia guianensis (Aubl.) Choisye	caaopiá, pau-de-lacre	Purgative	1874
Iridaceae
Trimezia galaxioides (Gomes) Ravennae	baririçó, maririçó	Roots purgative	1864
Trimezia juncifolia (Klatt) Benth. &Hook.f.d,e	ruibarbo-do-campo, pireto	Roots purgative	1920
Krameriaceae
Krameria argentea Mart. ex Spreng.e,f	ratânia-do-brasil, da-terra	Astringent	1888
Lamiaceae
Hyptis radicans (Pohl) Harley & J.F.B.Pastoree,f	paracary, hortelã-brava, mentrasto, meladinha	Asthma and snake bites	1874
Leonotis nepetifolia (L.) R.Br.e,f	cordão-de-frade, cordão-de-são-francisco, leonuro	Excitant, baths for children	1864
Ocimum americanum L.e	alfavaca-do-campo, remedio-do-vaqueiro	Excitant, sudorific, constipation	1864
Vitex megapotamica (Spreng.) Moldenkee	tarumá	Baths for rheumatism	1874
Lauraceae
Aniba puchury-minor (Mart.) Meze	puchury-miri	Same as Puchury	1874
Cinnamomum verum J.Presle	canela	Dyspepsy, antidiarrheal	1920
Dicypellium caryophyllaceum (Mart.) Neesb,e,f	pau-de-cravo, cravo-maranhão, imyráquiynhá	Aromatic	1874
Ocotea cujumary Mart.e	cujumary	Seeds for dyspepsy	1874
Ocotea cymbarum Kunthe	sassafrás-do-brasil, pau-sassafrás	Barks tonic	1874
Ocotea longifolia Kunthe	canela-de-cheiro	Oil for rheumatic pain and spasm of muscle	1874
Nectandra reticulata (Ruiz & Pav.) Meze		Aromatic, emmenagogue and stomachic	1874
Sassafraz albidum (Nutt.) Neesa	sassafrás	Syphylis, wound healing, rheumatism	1864
Lecythidaceae
Cariniana legalis (Mart.) Kuntze	jequitibá	Astringent, antidiarrheal	1864
Eschweilera grandiflora (Aubl.) Sandwithe	sapucaieira	Diuretic, jaundice, hepatites, intermittent fevers	1874
Gustavia hexapetala (Aubl.) Sm.e	janiparindiba	Leaves for liver disorders	1874
Linderniaceae
Lindernia difusa (L.) Wettst.e	caa-ataya, erva-de-ferro, mata cana, orelha de rato, purga de joão paes	Emetic	1874
Loganiaceae
Strychnos toxifera R.H.Schomb. ex Benth.e	curare, ervadura, uiráry, ticúna, woorara	Muscle relaxant	1874
Malvaceae
Guazuma ulmifolia Lam.c,e	mutamba, guazuma	Astringent, skin/scalp disease	1897
Helicteres sacarolha A. St.-Hil.c,e	sacarrolha, rosea-para-mulas	Venereal disease, emollient	1874
Pavonia sidifolia Kunthe	malva diurética	Emollient, diuretic, dysuria	1888
Sida planicaulis Cav.e	vassoura	Emollient	1864
Sphaeralcea bonariensis (Cav.) Grisebe	malvaisco	Emollient against cough	1888
Triumfetta eriocarpa A.St.-Hil., T. semitriloba Jacq., T. sepium A.St.-Hil., Juss. & Cambess.e	carrapicho de calçada	Blennorrhea	1874
Urena lobata L.c,e,f	guaxima,malvaisco	Emollient	1864
Urena sinuata L.e	carrapicho	Flowers emollient against cough	1874
Waltheria communis A.St.-Hil.c,e,f	douradinha	Emollient against cough	1874
Melastomaceae
Miconia cinnamomifolia (DC.) Naudin	erva dutra	Leaves antidiarrheal	1874
Meliaceae
Guarea macrophylla ssp. spicaeflora (A.Juss.) T.D.Penn.e	marinheiro de folha larga, tuaiussú, utuapoca	Bark and roots purgative	1874
Menispermaceae
Chondrodendron platiphyllum (A.St.-Hil.) Miers	abutua, butua, parreira brava	Roots for intermittent fevers	1864
Cissampelos glaberrima A.St.-Hil.b,e	cipó de cobra, caapeba, erva-de-nossa-senhora	Snake bites	1874
Moraceae
Dorstenia arifolia Lam., D. brasiliensis Lam.b,c,e,f	contraerva, caapiá, carapiá, caxapiá, cayapiá	Roots excitant, fevers, emmenagogue	1874
Ficus adhatodifolia Schott ex Spreng.e	coajinguva, cuáxinguba	Vermifuge	1874
Ficus gomelleira Kunth & C.D.Bouchée	gameleira, figueira-branca	Vermifuge, purgative	1888
Myristicaceae
Virola bicuhyba (Schott ex Spreng.) Warb.e	bicuiba, bucuúba, moscadeira-do-brasil	Seeds to treat rheumatic pain	1874
Virola sebifera Aubl.e	ucuuba	Rheumatism	1874
Myrtaceae
Blepharocalyx salicifolius (Kunth) O.Berg, Campomanesia pubescens (Mart. ex DC.) O.Bergc,e	guabiroba	Leaves antidiarrheal, leucorrhea	1874
Eugenia ayacuchae Steyerm.a,d,f	jaboticaba	Astringent, fruit for treat tonsilitis	1864
Eugenia pyriformis Cambess.e	uvalheira	Refreshing	1874
Nyctaginaceae
Boerhavia coccinea Mill.c,f	erva-tostão, tangaraca	Diuretic, liver disorders	1864
Ochnaceae
Ouratea sp.c	batiputá	Oil from seeds to treat rheumatism	1888
Orchidaceae
Vanilla planifolia Jacq. ex Andrewse,f	baunilha	Stimulant, aphrodisiac, emmenagogue, diuretic	1864
Phyllanthaceae
Phyllanthus brasiliensis (Aubl.) Poir.e	conabi	Leaves emetic	1874
Phytolaccaceae
Petiveria alliacea L.e,f	pipi, raiz-de-guiné	Stimulant	1864
Piperaceae
Piper anisum (Spreng.) Angelyb,c,e	jaborandi	Aromatic, sialagogue, odontalgic	1874
Plumbaginaceae
Limonium brasiliense (Boiss.) Kuntzef	guaycuru, baycuru	Roots astringent	1897
Plumbago scandens L.d,e	queimadeira, loco, caa-pomonga	Vesicant, ear ache	1888
Polygalaceae
Acantocladus brasiliensis Klotzsch ex Hassk.	laranjeirinha-do-mato	Cholics	1874
Poaceae
Andropogon bicornis L.e	sapé	Diuretic	1864
Stenotaphrum secundatum (Walter) Kuntzee	grama-da-praia	Roots emollient, diuretic, to treat inflammation	1874
Polygonaceae
Polygonum punctatum Elliott, Muehlenbeckia sagittifolia (Ortega) Meisn.c,e	erva-de-bicho, acataya, capeticova, cataya, persicaria, pimenta-d’agua	Stimulant, diuretic, emmenagogue, antihemorrhoidal	1864
Rosaceae
Prunus myrtifolia (L.) Urb.e	cerejeira, gingeira-brava	Stimulant, nevralgy, liver disorders, antiemmetic	1874
Rubiaceae
Chiococca alba (L.) Hitchc.c,d,e	cainca, cainana, cipó-cruz, cruzeirinha, fedorenta, raiz-de-frade, preta	Roots diuretic, purgative, dropsy, snake bites	1864
Coutarea hexandra (Jacq.) K.Schum.d,e	quina-do-brasil, quina-de-pernambuco	Bark intermittent fevers	1864
Ladenbergia cujabensis Klotzsch	quina-de-cuiabá	Barks bitter, to treat intermittent fevers	1864
Ladenbergia hexandra (Pohl) Klotzsch	quina-do-rio-de-janeiro	Bark intermittent fevers	1874
Ladenbergia lambertiana (Mart.) Klotzsche	quina-do-brasil	Barks bitter, to treat intermittent fevers	1864
Remijia firmula (Mart.) Wedd.e	quina-do-brasil	Barks bitter, to treat intermittent fevers	1864
Remijia macrocnemia (Mart.) Wedd.e	quina-do-brasil	Barks bitter, to treat intermittent fevers	1864
Rustia formosa (Cham. & Schltdl. ex DC.) Klotzsche	quina-do-brasil	Bark intermittent fevers	1864
Schizocalyx cuspidatus (A.St.-Hil.) Kainul. & B.Bremere	quina-do-brasil, quina-do-mato	Bark intermittent fevers	1864
Rutaceae
Angostura trifoliata (Willd.) T.S.Elias	angustura	Tonic, antidiarrhreal, diaphoretic, sudorific, bronchitis	1874
Esenbeckia febrifuga (A.St.-Hil.) A.Juss. ex Mart.c,e	três-folhas-vermelhas, laranjeira-do-mato, quina	Barks as febrifuge	1874
Galipea jasminiflora (A.St.-Hil.) Engl.c,e	três-folhas-brancas, quina-falsa	Barks for treat intermittent fevers	1874
Pilocarpus pennatifolius Lem.a	jaborandi	Sudorific, sialagogue, bronchitis, hydropsy, fevers	1874
Zanthoxylum tingoassuiba A.St.-Hil.c,f	tinguaciba	Intermittent fevers	1888
Sapindaceae
Cupania vernalis A.St.-Hil.	caboatan-de-capoeira	Barks for asthma and cough	1888
Paullinia pinnata L.e	timbó, cururu-apé	Narcotic, sedative	1864
Sapotaceae
Manilkara excelsa (Ducke) Standl.	massaranduba	Respiratory disorders	1874
Pouteria caimito (Ruiz & Pav.) Radlk.e	abiaba	Antidiarrheal, intermittent fevers	1897
Pradosia lactescens (Vell.) Radlk.b,f	monésia, buranhém, guaranhém	Baths to treat erysipela	1864
Scrophulariaceae
Buddleja stachyoides Cham. & Schltdl.c,e,f	barbasco, verbasco, calção-de-velho	Leaves and flowers emollient	1874
Simaroubaceae
Simarouba versicolor A.St.-Hil.c,d,e	parahyba	Bark against head lice	1874
Siparunaceae
Siparuna brasiliensis (Spreng.) A.DC.	limoeiro-bravo	Leaves for contusion, respiratory disease	1874
Solanaceae
Brunfelsia uniflora (Pohl) D.Dond,e	manacá, camgabá, geratacaca, jeretaca	Roots purgative, antisyphilitic	1874
Solanum aculeatissimum Jacq.	arrebenta-cavallo	Digestive disorders, skin diseases	1888
Solanum americanum Mill.c,e	giquirioba, jiquirioba	Skin disease	1892
Solanum cernuum Vell.c,e	velame-do-mato, braço-de-preguiça	Leaves liver disorders	1874
Solanum pseudoquina A. St.-Hil.c,e	quina-de-são-paulo	Bark intermittent fevers	1874
Styracaceae
Styrax maninul B.Walln., S. ferrugineus Nees & Mart.e	estoraque-do-brasil	Stimulant	1897
Urticaceae
Bohemeria caudata Sw.e	asa-peixe	Baths antihemorrhoidal and diuretic	1874
Cecropia palmata Willd.a,c,e	ambayba, imbayba, umbauba, árvore-da-preguiça	Skin disease, venereal disease	1864
Verbenaceae
Glandularia microphylla (Kunth) Cabrerae	alecrim-do-campo	Aromatic baths	1892
Lippia brasiliensis (Link) T.R.S.Silvae	camará, erva-sagrada	Febrifuge	1897
Lippia pseudothea (A.St.-Hil.) Schauerc,e,f	chá-de-pedestre, chá-de-frade	Stimulant	1874
Stachytarpheta jamaicensis (L.) Vahle	gervao, orgibão, urgevão	Leaves sudorific and stimulant	1864
Violaceae
Anchietea pyrifolia (Mart.) G.Donc,e,f	cipó-sumá, piragaia	Roots purgative	1874
Winteraceae
Drimys brasiliensis Miersc,e	casca-de-anta, paratudo	Antispasmodic	1874
Zingiberaceae
Renealmia aromatica (Aubl.) Griseb., Renealmia alpinia (Rottb.) Maase	pacová, cuité-açú, paco-seroca	Roots stomachic, to treat skin ulcers	1874

• ^a
  Cited by Piso (1648) (based in popular name).
• ^b
  Cited in Triaga Brasilica (Pereira et al., 1996).
• ^c
  Cited by Saint-Hilaire in his field book (Brandão et al., 2012).
• ^d
  Cited by Gardner in his manuscripts (Fagg et al., 2015).
• ^e
  Cited by Von Martius in Materiae Medicae (Martius, 1843).
• ^f
  Cited in 1st edition of Brazilian Official Pharmacopoeia (Brandão et al., 2009).

The confirmation of the geographic origin of the plants was also observed in this same website. Some discrepancies about the occurrence of the plants cited by Chernoviz and our current knowledge of the Brazilian flora were observed. For instance, Cestrum nocturnum and Cocus nucifera are currently not considered natives in the country's flora however common these plants might be. In other cases, this is just a matter of misapplied names – Drymis winteri does not occur in Brazil, the correct identification of the species found in this country being Drimys granatensis instead. Moreover, Chiococca spp. and Senebiera pinnatifida, cited by the author as exotic plants, are currently known to be natives.

Many species, that only the popular name were cited by the author, were not included in the Boxes as "amapá", "muirapuama", "pajurá", "cabeça-de-negro", "cabeça-de-moleque" and "tamaquaré". Other scientific names cited by the author were also excluded from the Boxes since they were not confirmed as valid names, namely "cipó-guyra" (Bignonia guyra), "rabo-de-tatu" or "sumaré" (Cypripedium brasiliensis), "caámembeca" (Polygala paraensis), "cabacinho" or "bucha–dos-caçadores" (Momordica bucha) and "jaborandi" (Monniera trifolia). "Chique-chique" was also excluded from this survey, since the scientific name assigned to it by Chernoviz (Cereus jamacaru) does not match the species to which this popular name has always been assigned (Pilosocereus gounelleii), which could lead to ambiguous interpretations. Likewise, the species assigned to "caferana" or "jacaré-açu" (Tachia guianensis Aubl.) does not occur in Brazil, and although this is probably a case of misidentification, this plant was excluded.

Survey on other historical references about Brazilian plants

We performed searches for data about the plants cited by Chernoviz in other historical bibliographical sources. The oldest one was Triaga Brasilica, a recipe from the 16th century (Pereira et al., 1996). The book Historiae Naturalis & Medicae published by Piso in 1648 was also studied, but since only the popular names of the plants were cited. Data registered in the 1840s manuscripts of George Gardner (Fagg et al., 2015), the field books (Brandão et al., 2012) and the book Plantes usuelles des Brasiliens by Auguste de Saint-Hilaire (Saint-Hilaire, 1824), the book Materia Medica by the german Karl von Martius (Martius, 1843) and the 1st Edition of Brazilian official Pharmacopoeia were also obtained (Brandão et al., 2009).

Survey of laboratory studies correlated with traditional uses

Searches in PubMed and Lilacs for information about pharmacological studies correlated with the traditional use were also performed, and the results are listed in Box 1.

Results and discussion

In the present study, we have recovered data about Brazilian useful plants from six editions of the Formulary and Medical Guide, published by Chernoviz (followed by his son) from 1864 to 1920. This book reached 19 different editions, being the first published already in 1841, just one year after the author arrived in Brazil. The number of Brazilian plants was dramatically increased along the new editions. As a physician, Chernoviz wrote detailed information about the efficacy and preparation of the remedies from each plant. As he describes in the introduction of each edition, the data were collected from literature available at that time and also from his medical experience during the 15 years he lived in Rio de Janeiro.

Data from 238 useful plants could be retrieved from the books (Boxes 1 and 2). The species are distributed among 83 families, Asteraceae and Fabaceae being the most represented with nineteen (8%) and seventeen (7%), respectively. The other most represented families were Rubiaceae twelve (5%), Euphorbiaceae, Lauraceae and Malvaceae (ten species, 4%), Apocynaceae (nine species, 4%), Solanaceae (eight species, 3%), Cucurbitaceae (seven species, 3%), Bignoniaceae and Rutaceae (six species, 3%), Meliaceae and Verbenaceae (five species), Araceae, Lamiaceae, Lecythidaceae and Myrtaceae, (four species) and Boraginaceae, Gentianaceae, Hypericaceae, Loganiaceae, Menispermaceae, Moraceae, Phyllantaceae, Sapindaceae and Sapotaceae (three species). The remaining families are represented by one or two species.

A total of 117 different traditional uses were recorded for the plants in the six studied editions, and the two most common were as purgative and to treat intermittent fevers (30 and 26 species, respectively). Other well documented uses were as diuretic (21), antidiarrheal and tonic (18), stimulant (17), as astringent, febrifuge and to treat skin ulcers (13), to treat liver disorders, skin diseases and as vermifuge (11), to treat bronchitis, snake bites and as sudorific (10), as antisyphillitic, emmolient and to treat rheumatism (9), as bitter, to treat dropsy and wound healing (8), as emetic and to treat jaundice (7), and as emmenagogue and stomachic (6). Other 90 indications were attributed to five or less plants.

Most plants cited by Chernoviz have been already used in Brazil in the previous century, confirming their importance in traditional secular medicine. Informations on some species were already been compiled by the Portuguese priests in the early colonization of the continent. The Triaga (Teriac), for example, was a Roman ancient remedy used to treat fevers and poisoning, and had part of the components of the original European recipe gradually substituted with plants native to Brazil in 16th century (Pereira et al., 1996). Fourteen plants from the Triaga Brasilica were cited in his book: Cissampelos sp. and Chondodendron platiphyllum, Menispermaceae; Aristolochia sp., Aristolochiaceae; Piper peltatum and Piper anisum, Piperaceae; Solanum paniculatum, Solanaceae; Senna occidentalis and Myroxylon balsamum, Fabaceae; Carapichea ipecacuanha, Rubiaceae; Dorstenia sp., Moraceae; Dicypellium caryophyllatum, Lauraceae; Pradosia lactescens, Sapotaceae; and Bixa orellana, Bixaceae. In the 17th century, the Dutch G. Piso lived for eight years in the northeastern coast and recorded his observations in the book Historiae Naturalis & Medicae, published in 1648 (Pisonis, 1648). This work describes the plants used by the Amerindians at the time and was the only source of information on the biodiversity of South America until the late 18th century. Plants registered by Guilherme Piso in the 17th century were also identified in the Chernoviz books (by popular names): Anacardium occidentale and Schinus terebinthifolius, Anacardiaceae; Hancornia speciosa, Apocynaceae; Bixa orellana, Bixaceae; Protium icicariba, Burseraceae; Joannesia princeps, Euphorbiaceae; Andira fraxinifolia, Copaifera spp. and Hymenaea spp., Fabaceae; Sassafraz albidum, Lauraceae; Eugenia ayacuchae and Psidium guajava, Myrtaceae; Piper sp., Piperaceae; Pilocarpus pennatifolius, Rutaceae; Solanum paniculatum, Solanaceae; and Cecropia palmate, Urticaceae. In 19th century, Portuguese crown opened the borders to the scientific expeditions of naturalists from other European countries. The pioneer was the German Alexander von Humboldt, who explored the area now occupied by Venezuela, Guyana, and the Brazilian states of Amapá and Roraima, from 1799 to 1804. In the 19th century, dozens of other scientists from different parts of Europe travelled to South America, especially Brazil, describing the flora, fauna, mineral wealth and local customs. The contribution of these naturalists to the knowledge of South American biodiversity is incalculable – thousands of plants were brought to the light of science and thousands of new genera and species have been described, based on the materials they collected. From the works of the 19th century's European naturalists, 192 species (80.1%) were also cited by von Martius, 59 species (24.8%) by A. de Saint-Hilaire, and 24 (10%) by G. Gardner. The same traditional was observed for 65% of the species cited by von Martius and 43% of the species cited by Saint-Hilaire. Eleven species cited by Chernoviz were cited by all the three European naturalists: Gomphrena arborescens, Amaranthaceae; Schinus terebinthifolius, Anacardiaceae; Hancornia speciosa, Apocynaceae; Ilex paraguariensis, Aquifoliaceae; Hymenaea courbaril; Fabaceae; Deianira sp., Gentianaceae; Strychnos pseudoquina, Loganiaceae; Cissampelos ovalifolia, Menispermaceae; Chiococca alba, Palicourea rigida, Rubiaceae; and Simarouba versicolor, Simaroubaceae. This result shows the relevance of the use of such species in the Brazilian traditional medicine on the past. In addition, 51 species were included in the 1st Edition of the Brazilian Official Pharmacopoeia showing their importance also in conventional medicine (Boxes 1 and 2).

It is interesting to note that, on the other side, 34 plants cited by Chernoviz in his work had not been published previously in the consulted bibliography, and these data were probably collected by his own experience as medical doctor in Rio de Janeiro. In fact, Chernoviz's interest in Brazilian medicinal plants was high, since he has incorporated several species along the subsequent editions. While sixty-four plant species (26.9% of the total) were referred as "plants from Brazil" in the 6th edition from 1864, higher numbers were observed in subsequent editions, reaching a total of 238 in the last edition, from 1920.

Among the traditional uses, purgative plants were the most cited by the author (30 species), being 21 new species included in the edition of 1874. Purgatives were widely used in the 19th century due to the belief that diseases were caused by a "dirty body" and it was necessary to "purge", for cleansing. Purgatives from plants are no longer used in the medical practice, and this fact can explain the existence of few data about them in the medical literature – only a report for J. princeps was found, describing episodes of diarrhoea after its use (Nishioka and Escalante, 1997), and two studies showing the laxative effect of Operculina macrocarpa in mice (Michelin and Salgado, 2004; Paganotte et al., 2016). On the other side, plants used to treat diarrhoea were also very important in the 19th century and the most known and used preparation was made of ipecacuanha root, Carapichea ipecacuanha, Rubiaceae. The beneficial effect of this plant described as early as the 16th century is due to the presence of the alkaloids emetine and cepheline. These substances act specifically on Entamoeba parasites that cause diarrhoea, which were prevalent and often fatal in Chernoviz's time. Although eighteen Brazilian plants were cited as antidiarrheal, besides C. ipecacuanha, only Psidium guajava had this property evaluated (Ojewole et al., 2008; Birdi et al., 2010, 2014). Cacalia mentrasto and Simarouba amara were evaluated as antimicrobial (Caceres et al., 1990; Adetutu et al., 2012; Singh et al., 2013), which can be related to an antidiarrheal function.

A total of 55 species were cited as useful to treat general skin diseases in the six studied editions, including lupus, acne, eczema, psoriasis, leprosy, astringent, emmolient, as wound healing, to treat skin ulcers, abscess, burns, dry skin, erysipela and impingen. From these, eighteen studies were performed to date in order to verify the efficacy of these plants (Box 1). Other 21 plants were registered as diuretics, nine being cited already in the first edition (Tripogandra diuretica, Senna occidentalis, Boerhavia hirsuta, Phyllanthus spp., Andropogon bicornis and Polygonum spp., Acanthospermum australe, Chiococca alba and Vanilla planifolia). Despite the higher number of species used and their old use, only Phyllanthus niruri has been submitted to pharmacological studies, in order to verify its diuretic activity (Micali et al., 2006; Giribabu et al., 2014). Fever was a very common health problem at that time, but the most feared was the intermittent fever, showing typical symptoms of malaria. The medical cure for malaria originated in the 17th century when the Spaniards learned, from the Native Americans living in Peru, the use of the bark from Cinchona spp., especially Cinchona succirubra Pav. ex Klotzch (Rubiaceae), known as "china" or "quina". In the 19th century, the Portuguese stimulated the search for substitutes for Cinchona and many species were named "quina" (Cosenza et al., 2013). Among the 39 plants registered in the books to treat fevers, 26 species were pointed by Chernoviz as useful to treat intermittent fevers, among them seven species of Brazilian quinas (Strychnos pseudoquina, Ladenbergia hexandra, Remijia ferruginea, Schizocalyx cuspidatus, Esenbeckia febrifuga, Galipea jasminiflora, and Solanum pseudoquina). From these, only Strychnos pseudoquina and R. ferruginea were evaluated to date as antimalarial and they showed a moderated activity (Andrade-Neto et al., 2003).

Until the first years of the 20th century, the Pharmacopoeia General from Portugal published in 1794, was the official medical reference used in Brazil. In this Pharmacopoeia, few Brazilian species were officialized, among them abutua (Chondrodendron platiphyllum, Menispermaceae), copahyba balsam (Copaifera spp., Fabaceae), contraherva (Dorstenia spp, Moraceae), Elemi or Almacega from Brazil (Protium icicariba, Proteaceae), ipecacuanha (Carapichea ipecacuanha, Rubiaceae), ipecacuanha branca (Pombalia calceolaria, Violaceae) and Smilax salsaparrilha, Smilacaceae. The Portuguese Pharmacopoeia was replaced by the Chernoviz's Formulary and Medical Guide and this book was then required in all Pharmacies in Brazil. This occurred until the publication of the first edition of the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia (FBRAS), in 1926. Fifty-one native plant species previously described by Chernoviz were then formalized in the conventional medicine by their inclusion in the first edition of FBRAS (Brandão et al., 2009). The Brazilian plants, cited by Chernoviz, and included in the 1st edition of FBRAS, are examples of American medicinal plants used both in traditional and conventional medicine.

It is unquestionable that the rational use of medicinal plants should be supported by proper laboratorial investigations and clinical trials (Cravotto et al., 2010; Atanasov et al., 2015). Sixty-one species cited by Chernoviz (25.6%) have been submitted to in vitro and pre-clinical studies and their traditional uses were confirmed. We argue that these plants must be prioritized in development of medicines, submitting them to clinical studies or by considering their traditionality, as established by WHO. It is also very important to define strategies for the protection of the biodiversity and the Native American traditional heritage.

Acknowledgements

We thank CNPq (563563/2010 REFLORA) for financial support and all the Libraries for making their collections available to our studies. We are also grateful to Dr. Maria Fernanda Calió (Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, Brazil), Dr. Rubens Queiroz (Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa, Brazil), Dr. Pedro Luís Rodrigues de Moraes (Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rio Claro, Brazil), Dr. Alexandre Zuntini (Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil), Dr. Camila Dellanhese Inácio and Dr. Lilian Eggers (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul), and Dr. Juliana Gastaldello Rando (Universidade do Oeste da Bahia) for their valuable nomenclatural aid. We are also grateful to Tamara Castro for the help in revision of the books.

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Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  May-Jun 2017

History

• Received
  1 Oct 2016
• Accepted
  10 Jan 2017