Abstract

GARCIA-SANCHEZ, Fátima; LOPEZ-VILLAFRANCO, Ma. Edith; AGUILAR-RODRIGUEZ, Silvia  and  AGUILAR-CONTRERAS, Abigail. Ethnobotany and comparative morpho-anatomy of Tagetes used in Nicolas Romero, State of Mexico. Bot. sci [online]. 2012, vol.90, n.3, pp.221-232. ISSN 2007-4476.

Tagetes lucida (pericón), T. lunulata (cinco llagas), and T. micrantha (anisillo), traditionally used as therapeutic resource in the locality of Nicolas Romero, Estado de México, were studied in order to provide information to the herbal pharmacopoeia of Mexico. Ethnobotanical work was conducted through semi-structured interviews to the general population and for morpho-anatomical research, field specimens were collected. The stems and leaves were sectioned by free hand and by using a rotary microtome and stained with safranin-fast green. The interviews showed that the species are used to treat stomach ache and diarrhea, as a relaxing agent, and to relieve menstrual cramps. The most common way to prepare them is as a tea. The morphological analysis showed that vegetative characters that provide more information to differentiate among species are related to the leaf architecture. Anatomically, the distinctive features are trichomes, distribution and number of vascular strands in the leaf mesophyll, and distribution of the cortex and sclerenchyma in the stem. This work also includes a key based on morphological and anatomical characters.

Keywords : anisillo; Asteraceae; cinco llagas; medicinal plants; mexican herbal; pericón; plant anatomy; Tagetes lucida; Tagetes lunulata; Tagetes micrantha.

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