Ethnobotanical uses of Cyperaceae species in Brazilian traditional medicine

Introduction: Species of Cyperaceae occur in all regions of Brazil and have been used in folk medicine in the country, as well as in other parts of the world. From this perspective, the present study aimed to review, for the first time, the folk medicinal use of Cyperaceae species in Brazil, making a distinction between species with and without experimental data available in the literature. Methods: Data were obtained from different databases. In the initial search, a total number of 604 publications were retrieved and those that did not meet the search criteria were excluded. A total of 159 articles were selected and used in this review.Results: According to the analysed documents, a total of 27 species of Cyperaceae have reports of folk medicinal use in 15 states of the country. Of these, 44% have been scientifically investigated for chemical constituents and/ or biological activities. Sesquiterpenes were the main constituents isolated from different species. The species are used to treat different health problems, especially inflammation, and the roots are the most frequently used parts. Conclusions: Cyperus rotundus is the species with the highest number of medicinal indications and pharmacological and phytochemical studies. Despite the wide spectrum of use of Cyperaceae species, scientific evidence to validate the indications mentioned by traditional communities is lacking for most of them.

Automated summary

This study reviewed the folk medicinal use of Cyperaceae species in Brazil, distinguishing between species with and without experimental data. It found that 27 species have reports of folk medicinal use in Brazil, but only 44% have been scientifically investigated. The lack of scientific evidence to validate the traditional medicinal use of most species was highlighted.