Source: Ronette 1xbet online casino , 785-532-6355, rgehring@1xbet online casino edu
Photos available: Contact media@1xbet online casino edu or call 785-532-6415
News release prepared by: Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, 785-532-6415, ebarcomb@1xbet online casino edu
Thursday, March 26, 2009
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| Pterocarpus angolensis (Kiaat tree) is used to treat tick-borne diseases. (All photos courtesty of Deon van der Merwe) |
AT K-STATE'S AFRICAN ISSUES SYMPOSIUM: RESEARCHERS COMBINE VETERINARY MEDICINE, CONSERVATION AND ANTHROPOLOGY TO EXAMINE USE OF NATIVE 1xbet online casino IN ANIMAL HEALTH
MANHATTAN -- When animals in southern Africa are sick, often the first place their caretakers look for help is from native 1xbet online casino .
That's what makes understanding and conserving these 1xbet online casino so important, according to a group of Kansas State University researchers who are learning more about the uses of such 1xbet online casino in veterinary medicine.
| Urginea sanguinea (slangkop) is a medicinal plant that is also highly dangerous due to toxicity. |
&1xbet online casino ;Our idea is to bridge the disciplines of anthropology, veterinary medicine and ecological conservation,&1xbet online casino ; said Ronette Gehring, assistant professor of clinical sciences at K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine.
She is working with fellow veterinarian Deon van der Merwe, K-State assistant professor of diagnostic medicine and pathobiology, to better understand how farmers and other people in southern Africa use native 1xbet online casino for animal health.
Southern Africa is rich in botanical and cultural diversity, which makes it an ideal environment to study 1xbet online casino as a component of ethno-veterinary medicine. Van der Merwe and Gehring are working with K-State's David Hartnett, university distinguished professor of biology, to understand the conservation needs for these important 1xbet online casino , and with Tiffany Kershner, assistant professor of anthropology at K-State, to understand the cultural and linguistic aspects.
1xbet online casino will present the group's research at K-State's African Issues Symposium: Food Security, Environmental Sustainability and Human Health, which is March 30 to April 1. More information about the symposium is available at: http://www.1xbet online casino edu/africanstudies/2009symposium/
Gehring said people in southern Africa rely on native 1xbet online casino for the health of food animals like cattle, goats, sheep and chickens, as well as for dogs, which are popular as pets.
&1xbet online casino ;In the United States, medicinal plants aren't used as much for animals, except as alternative health care for pets and other companion animals,&1xbet online casino ; Gehring said. &1xbet online casino ;In developing countries, they are very much being used as primary care. Native plants are what people have access to.&1xbet online casino ;
The K-State research so far has relied on the few attempts by other researchers to document the use of native 1xbet online casino for veterinary medicine in southern Africa, including van der Merwe's previous research, which he said established a baseline that will make it easier to do comparative research in different regions.
&1xbet online casino ;With just 21 references, we have barely scratched the surface,&1xbet online casino ; Gehring said. &1xbet online casino ;Few groups are interested in studying this. The data haven't been pulled together before, so this is an important starting point. Now we have a database to use.&1xbet online casino ;
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| Herders are the typical users of traditional medicines. |
The researchers found 18 areas in southern Africa where native 1xbet online casino are documented being used for animal health. This includes 506 herbal remedies, although these don't come from 506 unique 1xbet online casino . These remedies are documented being used for 81 symptoms, including intestinal parasites, wounds, diarrhea and helping cows that are calving.
&1xbet online casino ;The vast majority of these 506 remedies use roots, leaves and bark, if not the whole plant,&1xbet online casino ; Gehring said. &1xbet online casino ;This is potentially destructive to the plant, which is a concern from a conservation standpoint.&1xbet online casino ;
Gehring 1xbet online casino it's also important for the researchers to understand more about the context in which these remedies are used.
&1xbet online casino ;These remedies are often used by farmers rather than healers and other health care providers for whom the treatment may be more secretive,&1xbet online casino ; Gehring said. &1xbet online casino ;Farmers may be more open about their knowledge.&1xbet online casino ;
Kershner, a linguistic anthropologist, 1xbet online casino that one of the many challenges the researchers face is that for many of the smaller indigenous African languages, there is no written record.
&1xbet online casino ;For some of these smaller groups, there is little documentation of linguistic and cultural practices involved in ethno-veterinary plant harvesting and treatment, yet we know they exist,&1xbet online casino ; she said.
As these languages become threatened by outside influences, Kershner said knowledge about native 1xbet online casino used in veterinary medicine might also disappear. Understanding the cultural aspects of plant use also will help anthropologists better understand how different cultures perceive and talk about their natural world, she said.
