@Article{phyton.2018.87.072,
AUTHOR = {Villa-Hernández JM, B García-Ocón, E del C Sierra-Palacios, C Pelayo-Zaldivar, F Díaz de León-Sánchez, LJ Pérez-Flores, JA Mendoza-Espinoza},
TITLE = {Molecular biology techniques as new alternatives for medicinal plant identification},
JOURNAL = {Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany},
VOLUME = {87},
YEAR = {2018},
NUMBER = {all},
PAGES = {72--78},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/phyton/v87nall/33925},
ISSN = {1851-5657},
ABSTRACT = {Mexico bears witness to a long-standing tradition in
the use of plants for medicinal purposes; nevertheless, standardized
methodological approaches for the proper identification of these are
still needed. The problem is especially noticeable during the validation
of ingredients in herbal preparations, as so many of them are sold as
powders. It is for these reasons that the present study aims to compare
the results of classic taxonomical assessments with those obtained
using more modern molecular techniques (e.g. PCR-amplified 18S
ribosomal RNA gene analysis) in one ethnobotanical case-study carried
out in the “<i>Desierto de los Leones</i>” National Park in Mexico City,
Mexico. Molecular identification resulting from the comparison of
PCR-amplified 18S rRNA genes from 7 different plant species to
those deposited in the GenBank database was performed. Genuslevel
identification by molecular techniques and database searches
coincided with results obtained using classic taxonomical approaches
in 6 of the 7-species analyzed. Only one (<i>Eupatorium</i>) could not be
identified in the GenBank database and has therefore been described
in this study. In a further phytochemical analysis, the plant commonly
known as “<i>Avena del campo</i>” presented the highest content of total flavonoids,
while the plants “<i>Sienecilla”, “Jarilla amarilla</i>” and “<i>Jarameo</i>”
showed abundant levels of alkaloids. Our results support the idea of
using molecular biology techniques such as 18S rRNA gene comparisons
for plant identification at the genus-level. However, if this is to
become a viable alternative for the large-scale assessment of herbal
medicines, the need to expand current 18S rRNA gene databases is
made patently obvious.},
DOI = {10.32604/phyton.2018.87.072}
}