Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used by the population of Ain Chkef (North central Morocco)

Background: Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) use in the folk medicine is widely spread in Morocco. This work aims to study their use in Ain Chkef; a rural area in North central Morocco. It also documents multiples data concerning the ethno-medico-botanical traits of the most cited species. Methods: An ethnobotanical survey was carried out through the interview of 183 individuals. The responses were analyzed using several plant citation indexes (RFC; FIV; PPV and FL). Correlations between plants and humans of different ages, genders, educational levels, and marital status, were investigated by multiple components analysis (MCA) performed using XLSTAT software. Results: 93.44% of the studied population use MAPs. Among the 48 used species, belonging to 27 botanical families, the most frequently cited were Origanum compactum Benth. Chenopodium ambrosioides L, Cuminum cyminum L., Mentha pulegium L. Leaves were the dominant part used. The infusion and decoction were the principal preparation methods. MCA showed that people not or low using MAPs ( 7) or moderately (4 to 7) using MAPs are mainly: Female, married, with low educational level, >40 years aged. Conclusion: The present study highlighted the spread use of MAPs among the interviewed population in Ain Chkef as traditional remedies. Thus, this work will provide researchers with an important ethnobotanical database which can be exploited in the development of pharmacognosy. Keywords: Ethnobotanical study; medicinal plants; Ain Chkef; Plant citation indexes; multiple component analysis.