Ethnobotany of Tuberculosis in Laos highlights the common ground between biomedicine and traditional healing. Because of the destruction of forests, the degradation of old palm leaf manuscripts, and decreasing interest in traditional medicine by younger generations, it is becoming more and more important to record medicinal plant knowledge before it is lost. This research provides written and photographic documentation of some of the medicinal plant knowledge held by the people of Laos.
Translating and validating some of the power of traditional medicine used in Laos into biomedical terms through laboratory analyses may serve to demonstrate its importance in a global language. In this text, the translational research was performed through in vitro laboratory analyses of select plant species with a history to treat symptoms of TB. The processes of plant collection, extraction, biological assays, and isolation/elucidation are also described and detailed in the Biochemical Validation section.
The biomedical discoveries explored in, Ethnobotany of Tuberculosis in Laos, stresses the importance of conserving and sustaining our natural ecosystems for medicinal preservation and utilization.
Acknowledgements 2
Abstract 4
Key Words 4
Table of Contents 5
List of Figures 6
List of Tables 10
List of Abbreviations 11
Introduction and Background 13
Ethnobotany 30
Biochemical Validation 40
Summary and Conclusions 53
Cited Literature 57
Additional Tables 65
Glossary 74
Select Plant Images (in alphabetical order by family – genus – species names) 80