Phenology of Caryocar brasiliense in the Brazilian cerrado region

The objective was to study the phenology of Caryocar brasiliense Camb. (Caryocaraceae), a type of fruit of the Brazilian cerrado, in three areas (cerrado, pasture and in the campus of the Federal University of Minas Gerais) of the municipality of Montes Claros, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, during 3 years. The plants of C brasiliense presented linear growth with about 50 cm of height and 35 cm of crown width per year. Soils with loamy texture, dystrophic, rich in aluminum and with low pH favor the production of this species. C. brasiliense produced higher quantity of flowers in the middle third, followed by the apical and basal parts of the crown, while the fruit production was higher in the basal third, followed by the middle and apical parts of the canopy of this species. C brasiliense bloomed during the dry period and produced fruits in the rainy season. Its fruits presented about 6, 8 and 6 cm of width, length and height, respectively, and 160 g of gross weight. The extrativism without control has strong impact on the propagation of C brasiliense because only about 7.96 and 10.65% of plants up to 1.0 m height and 59.58 and 44.73% higher than 3.0 m (reproductive phase) was observed in the cerrado and pasture, respectively. This indicates that fruit collectors, practically, remove all fruits of this tree and thus they reduce, considerably, the propagation of C. brasiliense in the cerrado areas of Brazil. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Caracterização morfológica, perfil químico, atividade biológica e conservação in situ do gênero Lychnophora Mart. (Asteraceae: Vernonieae: Lychnophorinae), Brasil

Many people who live in the cerrado regions use plant species for therapeutic purposes. However, due to intensive extraction of some species, native botanical populations are at risk of disappearing or suffering a dramatic decrease, such as, for instance, individuals of the Lychnophora genus. This has 24 species distributed into the categories vulnerable, endangered, critically endangered, and possibly extinct. These individuals are known in folk medicine as “arnica” and their leaves and flowers are commonly used as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and healing agents. The chemical profile of the genus is characterized by the presence of sesquiterpene lactones, sesquiterpenes, diterpenes, triterpenes, flavonoids, steroids, polyacetylenes, and caryophyllene derivatives which also have lignans with analgesic activity. Studies with Lychnophora species show significant results with regard to their biological activities against Leishmania amazonensis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Tripanosoma cruzi. Therefore, this study aimed to perform a survey of the morphology, chemical composition, and biological activity, as well as the use and current conservation status of the Lychnophora genus in Brazil.