Pharmacogn J. 2019; 11(6)Suppl:1511-1525 A Multifaceted Journal in the field of Natural Products and Pharmacognosy Original Article www.phcogj.com Phytochemical and Pharmacological Support for the Traditional Uses of Zingiberacea Species in Suriname - A Review of the Literature Dennis RA Mans*, Meryll Djotaroeno, Priscilla Friperson, Jennifer Pawirodihardjo ABSTRACT The Zingiberacea or ginger family is a family of flowering plants comprising roughly 1,600 species of aromatic perennial herbs with creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes divided into about 50 genera. The Zingiberaceae are distributed throughout tropical Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Many members are economically important as spices, ornamentals, cosmetics, Dennis RA Mans*, Meryll traditional medicines, and/or ingredients of religious rituals. One of the most prominent Djotaroeno, Priscilla Friperson, characteristics of this plant family is the presence of essential oils in particularly the rhizomes Jennifer Pawirodihardjo but in some cases also the leaves and other parts of the plant. The essential oils are in general Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of made up of a variety of, among others, terpenoid and phenolic compounds with important Medical Sciences, Anton de Kom University of biological activities. The Republic of Suriname (South America) is well-known for its ethnic and Suriname, Paramaribo, SURINAME. cultural diversity as well as its extensive ethnopharmacological knowledge and unique plant Correspondence biodiversity. This paper first presents some general information on the Zingiberacea family, subsequently provides some background about Suriname and the Zingiberacea species in the Dennis RA Mans country, then extensively addresses the traditional uses of one representative of the seven Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Anton de Kom genera in the country and provides the phytochemical and pharmacological support for these University of Suriname, Kernkampweg 6, uses, and concludes with a critical appraisal of the medicinal values of these plants. Paramaribo, SURINAME. Key words: Zingiberaceae, Suriname, Traditional uses, Rationale, Phytochemical composition, Phone no: 597 441071; Pharmacological activity. E-mail: [email protected] History 3 • Submission Date: 01-10-2019; INTRODUCTION compounds. And the leaves and flowers from C. longa, the grains of paradise Aframomum melegueta • Review completed: 13-10-2019; The plant family Zingiberaceae or ginger family • Accepted Date: 14-10-2019. K. Schum., the white ginger Hedychium coronarium includes about 50 genera and roughly 1,600 known J. Koenig, and the east-Indian galangal Kaempferia DOI : 10.5530/pj.2019.11.232 species of flowering perennial plants that are galanga L. are consumed as vegetables and used as distributed throughout tropical Africa, Asia, and the Article Available online key ingredients of spicy savory dishes and/or herbal Americas.1 The highest diversity is encountered in http://www.phcogj.com/v11/i6s teas.3 south-eastern Asia, and the greatest concentration Copyright in the north-eastern region of India with 19 genera Various species in the genera Alpinia Roxb., 1810, © 2019 Phcogj.Com. This is an open- 1 access article distributed under the terms and 88 species. The majority of the Zingiberacea Curcuma L., Globba L., Hedychium J. Koenig, of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 members grows in humid and shady places.1 Most Kaempferia L., and Renealmia L.f. have visually International license. are small to large herbaceous plants with distichous attractive flowers and inflorescences and are leaves having basal sheaths that overlap to form a cultivated as ornamentals.3 The rhizomes from many 1 pseudostem. They are characterized by aromatic species in the genera Alpinia Roxb., 1810, Curcuma and creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes, L., Hedychium J. Koenig, and Zingiber Mill., 1754 hermaphroditic flowers consisting of a single contain essential oils for producing soaps, cosmetics, functional stamen (the pollen-producing part of and perfumes.3 In addition, a number of ginger the flower) that runs through the pistil (the ovule- species are medicinally used in various traditional producing part of the flower), and petals that are systems throughout the world. Examples are A. sterile stamina called staminodes.1 melegueta, C. longa, and Z. officinale, preparations Many members of the Zingiberaceae are of which are used for treating many diseases economically important as spices, ornamental ranging from infectious diseases and inflammatory plants, cosmetics, traditional medicines, and/or conditions to hypertension and diabetes mellitus.4 ingredients of religious rituals. The seeds from Parts from A. melegueta, C. longa, and R. alpinia are the genera Amomum Roxb. and Elettaria Maton also used in religious ceremonies.3 give the spice cardamom, the world’s third-most expensive spice in price per weight after vanilla and This paper first presents some general information saffron.2 The rhizomes from the Thai ginger Alpinia about the Zingiberacea family, subsequently provides galanga (L.) Willd., the turmeric Curcuma longa L., some background on Suriname, then extensively and the common ginger Zingiber officinale Roscoe addresses the traditional uses of one representative are well-known spices, condiments, and flavoring species of the seven Zingiberacea genera in the Cite this article: Mans DRA, Djotaroeno M, Friperson P, Pawirodihardjo J. Phytochemical and Pharmacological Support for the Traditional Uses of Zingiberacea Species in Suriname - A Phcogj.com Review of the Literature. Pharmacog J. 2019;11(6)Suppl:1511-25. 1511 Pharmacognosy Journal, Vol 11, Issue 6(Suppl), Nov-Dec, 2019 Mans, et al.: Phytochemical and Pharmacological Support for the Traditional Uses of Zingiberacea Species in Suriname - A Review of the Literature country as well as the phytochemical and pharmacological support for well-established example is the African rice Oryza glaberrima Steud. these uses, and concludes with a critical appraisal of the medicinal value (Poaceae) that has probably been introduced in Suriname by enslaved of these plants. African women who prepared meals on the slave ships and intentionally collected rice seeds.10 The new arrivals also grew useful plants from plant BACKGROUND parts they had brought along from their home country to Suriname General aspects of Suriname to prepare their specific foods, traditional medicines, cosmetics, and ritual artefacts.8 A few examples are the tamarind Tamarindus indica The Republic of Suriname is located on the north-east coast of South L. (Fabaceae), the milkvetch or huáng qí Astragalus propinquus America between French Guiana and Guyana and borders the Atlantic Schischkin (Fabaceae), the neem plant Azadirachta indica A. Juss., Ocean to the north and Brazil to the south. It is the smallest and least 1830 (Meliaceae), and the cat’s whiskers or kumis kutying Orthosiphon populated country in South America, occupying a land area of roughly stamineus Bold. (Lamiaceae).11 These plants are important in African 165,000 km2 and harboring an estimated 590,000 inhabitants.5 Roughly traditional medicine, Chinese traditional medicine, Indian Ayurveda, 80% of the population lives in the relatively narrow northern coastal and Javanese Jamu, respectively.11 zone while the remaining 20% populates the savannas and hinterlands in the interior of the country.5 Suriname’s most important economic Zingiberaceae species in Suriname means of support are crude oil drilling, gold mining, agriculture, In addition to the above-mentioned plant species and many others, 6 fisheries, forestry, and ecotourism. These activities have substantially several members of the Zingiberaceae family have been introduced contributed to the gross domestic income in 2017 of USD 2,996 billion into Suriname.12-15 They are commonly used for preparing condiments 6 and the average per capita income in that year of USD 5,150. This and soft drinks, as spices in food, for medicinal purposes, and in ritual positions Suriname on the World Bank’s list of upper-middle income 12-15 7 practices. A. melegueta and H. coronarium, for instance, originate economies. from Africa where they had considerable economic and medicinal Despite its relatively small population, Suriname is one of the ethnically, significance, and have probably been brought to Suriname and religiously, culturally, and linguistically most diverse countries in popularized in the country by enslaved Africans and their descendants. the world.5 In addition to the original inhabitants, the Indigenous 16 C. longa and H. coronarium are important plants in Indian Ayurveda Amerindians, the country is home to the descendants from enslaved and are associated with Hindustani indentured workers and their Africans from various African countries called Maroons, those of children17, and A. alpinia as well as K. galanga presumably originate mixed black and white origin called Creoles; the descendants from from Indonesia, where they have been for centuries important plants indentured laborers from China, India (called Hindustanis), and the in Jawa traditional medical and cultural practices.14 Not surprisingly, Indonesian island of Java (called Javanese), as well as those from several particularly the Surinamese Javanese abundantly use Zingiberacea 5 European and Middle Eastern countries. More recently, individuals species in health supplements known as jamus.14 from a number of Latin American and Caribbean countries including Brazil, Guyana,