Invasive species can change selective pressures on native plants by altering biotic and abiotic conditions in invaded habitats. Although invasions can lead to native species extirpation, they may also induce rapid evolutionary changes in remnant native plants. We investigated whether adult plants of five native perennial grasses exhibited trait shifts consistent with evolution in response to in...

The impact of exotic species on native organisms is widely acknowledged, but poorly understood. Very few studies have empirically investigated how invading plants may alter delicate ecological interactions among resident species in the invaded range. We present novel evidence that antifungal phytochemistry of the invasive plant, Alliaria petiolata, a European invader of North American forests, ...

Generalized mutualisms are often predicted to be resilient to changes in partner identity. Variation in mutualism-related traits between native and invasive species however, can exacerbate the spread of invasive species ('invasional meltdown') if invasive partners strongly interact. Here we show how invasion by a seed-dispersing ant (Myrmica rubra) promotes recruitment of a co-introduced invasi...

Herbal water is referred to the liquid obtained from the distillation of medicinal plants. Different parts of plants, such as flowers, fruits, leaves, seeds and roots have long been used to produce herbal waters. Herbal waters are used as dietary supplements and alternative medicine and are commonly used for flavoring in baking. Previous studies focused on the non-volatile constituents of herbs...

Ethnobotanical and ethnopharmaceutical studies are best way for screening medicinal properties of plants. Indigenous people use their native plants for medical perposes that may be of high potential and value for modern pharmacology. Turkmens are descendants of Oguz Turks and originaly nomadic group. they are culturaly an isolated ethnic group inhabited in NE of Iran and taking ethnopharmaceuti...

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recognised the potential utility of traditional remedies and strives to preserve the primary health care involving medicinal plants. In various parts of Algeria, especially in the arid region, medicinal plants are widely used as an alternative to pharmaceutical drugs; the folk medicine represents a very important phenomenon in regional culture. Continuing...

Lack of hunting and predators and proximity to human communities make suburban forests prone to high deer abundance and non-native plant invasions. I investigated these likely drivers of community structure in the herb layers of six suburban forests in one region of New Jersey, USA. In 223 plots I assessed the herb layer response to 2.5 years with or without deer fencing and the early stage of ...

background and objectives: iran owns a rich and prestigious heritage of medicinal herbs but the majority of these plants have not yet undergone chemical, pharmacological and toxicological studies. in the present study some species form northern parts of iran were evaluated for cytotoxicity. methods: sixteen medicinal plants were extracted with methanol and screened for their cytotoxic activitie...