Status of medicinal and aromatic plants in - Inia

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PRESENTED PAPERS 73 Conservation of medicinal and aromatic plants in Lithuania Jolita Radušienė Institute of Botany, Vilnius, Lithuania Introduction The use of wild medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) is widespread and has old traditions in Lithuania, especially in forested areas in the southern and southeastern parts of the country. About 100 taxa are still harvested from the wild for medicinal purposes, representing a significant part of the Lithuanian natural biodiversity which comprises 1323 vascular plant taxa. The changes in political and economic life (Lithuania regained its independence in 1991) have increased the demand for MAPs and therefore determinate the importance of germplasm conservation. Active conservation of MAPs is pursued within the context of the National State Plant Genetic Resources Programme (1998-2002). The Nordic Gene Bank has made a substantial contribution in starting and developing plant genetic resources (PGR) conservation activity in Baltic countries. The Nordic-Baltic collaborative project on PGR for food and agriculture was initiated in 1994 and is still ongoing (Weibull 2001). The MAP working group is one of the crop-specific working groups within this project. The new project SPIMED (Spice and medicinal plants in the Nordic and Baltic countries. Strategies for conservation of genetic resources) started in 2002. This paper provides a brief review of the current research and activities dealing with MAP germplasm conservation in Lithuania. Material and methods The analysis of trade figures is based on data collected by the governmental Department of Statistics and the Division of Plant Resources of the Ministry of Environment in 1996-2001. Target species for conservation were selected on the basis of their current economic value, usefulness for breeding and conservation status. The evaluation of accessions was carried out according to the morphometric analysis of the phenotype and the quality and quantity of secondary metabolites. Analytical methods were employed for chemical evaluation of the raw material of target species. Spectrophotometry was used for the determination of total flavonoids. The quantitative analysis of phenolic compounds was carried out by a modified HPLC gradient elution method (Hölzl and Ostrowski 1987). Essential oils were isolated by hydro-distillation. GC and GC–MS analyses were performed for qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the essential oils. The species distribution maps were prepared on the basis of herbarium data from the Institute of Botany and Vilnius University and our observations on MAP sources. Results and discussion • The trade in MAPs The average annual volume of plant material coming from the wild represents about 29% of the total volume used in pharmaceutics. This means that about 85 t dry raw material is extracted from the wild populations yearly (Fig. 1). The most frequently used native species in herbal medicine are Crataegus sp., Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Menyanthes trifoliata, Hypericum perforatum, Thymus serpyllum, Tussilago farfara, Polygonum aviculare, Urtica dioica and Frangula alnus.
74 WORKING GROUP ON MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC PLANTS: FIRST MEETING 300 250 Harvested from nature 200 tons 150 100 50 Produced in cultivation Imported Exported 0 1998 1999 2000 2001 Fig.1. Total volumes of raw material of medicinal and aromatic plants produced in natural habitats, cultivated, imported and exported in 1998-2001 in Lithuania. The increased MAP trade has been greatly influenced by the liberalization of the exportimport activity. According to import-export data Lithuania can be characterized as a country mainly importing the raw material in contrast to other eastern and central European countries (Bernáth 1999) (Fig. 2). The average annual volume of imported MAP raw material is about 65% of all material used in the pharmaceutical industry. Exports make up a small part of the trade and are mainly directed to the countries of the former Soviet Union. Ukraine 5% Egypt 11% Latvia 13% Germany 2% South Africa 1% Other 6% Poland 62% Fig. 2. Structure of MAP imports in Lithuania (1996-2001). Cultivation is one of the solutions to the problem of over-exploitation of wild species. During recent years an ever-increasing number of the rural population became involved in medicinal plant cultivation. The cultivated production covers only 4-6% of the demand for MAP raw material. The main plants under more intensive cultivation are caraway, valerian, marigold, chamomile, peppermint, and lemon thyme.
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ISBN 92-9043-633-6 Cover photos: co
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Status of medicinal and aromatic plants in - Inia

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