Nests of “caba-leão” wasps (Sceliphron sp., Sphecidae) used in traditional medicine by riverine communities of the Jaú and Unini Rivers, Amazon, Brazil: ethnopharmacological, chemical and mineralogical aspects

Author(s)

Eliana Rodrigues ; João H.G. Lago ^[2] ; Juliana de F.L. Santos ^[3] ; Ana Luisa V. Bitencourt

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE FARMACOGNOSIA-BRAZILIAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACOGNOSY; v. 28, n. 3, p. 352-357, 2018-06-00.

Abstract

ABSTRACT This research contributes to the study of substances present in homemade remedies used by the riverine communities of the Amazon, which are the result of insect–mineral–vegetable oil-interaction. The results of the analyses show the main components (inorganic and organic components) of the “caba-leão” wasps nests (Sceliphron sp., Sphecidae) used by “caboclos” as a topical medication to treat mumps and earaches. The ethnopharmacological data collection consisted of samples of wasps nests and soil, as a source of inorganic elements, from the Jaú and Unini Rivers, in the River Negro basin, Amazon, Brazil. The samples were qualitatively analyzed by infrared spectroscopy (organic and inorganic composition) as well as by X-ray diffraction (to identify minerals). Quantitative chemical analyses for ten major common elements were determined by X-ray fluorescence. The inorganic components are formed by minerals (quartz, kaolinite, illite and gibbsite), identified by X-ray diffraction and Infrared spectroscopy, which are common in the soil of the region. The analyses by X-ray fluorescence indicate that the most common oxides are SiO2, Al2O3, and Fe2O3 within minerals. This research contributed to the study of substances found in homemade remedies used by the riverine communities of the Amazon, which are the result of insect–mineral–vegetable oil-interaction. (AU)