Format: ORAL

Bishal Gurung1, 2, 3, Feng-Mao Yang1, 2, 3, Gao Chen1, 2*, Jia Ge1, 2*

1 Yunnan Key Laboratory for Integrative Conservation of Plant Species with Extremely Small Populations, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650201, China 2 CAS Key Laboratory for Plant Biodiversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650201, China 3 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.

Buddleja asiatica Lour. (Scrophulariaceae) is widely distributed across the Pan-Himalayan region. It has traditional medicinal applications and cultural value, as well as ecological significance. We conducted an ethnobotanical study combining field surveys from Nepal and Xizang, China with a literature review to assess the ethnobotanical, phytochemical, and pharmacological aspects of this species. We also employed in silico computational techniquesto confirm the pharmacological findings. Our study highlights the cultural significance of B. asiatica within indigenous communities, and in particular the use of the leaves to make a starter culture for the preparation of wine. The origin of plant use as a starter culture is likely to be vertical transmission, as inferred from the phylogenetic comparative method. However, an evident intergenerational gap in knowledge transfer exists. The phytochemical investigation revealed the presence of various chemical classes (carbohydrates, terpenoids, flavonoids, saponins, esters, steroids, glycosides, fatty acids). The potential medicinal properties of these chemicals include anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cytotoxic, antihepatotoxic, antimicrobial, and anti-cholinesterase activities and our in silico molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation support the efficacy of iridoid glycosides as potent anti-inflammatory agents. We combine these lines of evidence to show the prospects for the livelihoods of local people across this region and propose future research directions.