Comparing Wild and Cultivated Arnica montana L. from the Italian Alps to Explore the Possibility of Sustainable Production Using Local Seeds

Valeria Leoni, Gigliola Borgonovo, Luca Giupponi, Angela Bassoli, Davide Pedrali, Marco Zuccolo, Alessia Rodari and Annamaria Giorgi
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Valeria Leoni: Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.), University of Milan, Via Morino 8, 25048 Edolo, Italy
Gigliola Borgonovo: Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences (DEFENS), University of Milan, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milan, Italy
Luca Giupponi: Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.), University of Milan, Via Morino 8, 25048 Edolo, Italy
Angela Bassoli: Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences (DEFENS), University of Milan, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milan, Italy
Davide Pedrali: Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.), University of Milan, Via Morino 8, 25048 Edolo, Italy
Marco Zuccolo: Department of Medical Biotechnology and Translational Medicine, University of Milan, Via Vanvitelli 32, 20133 Milan, Italy
Alessia Rodari: Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.), University of Milan, Via Morino 8, 25048 Edolo, Italy
Annamaria Giorgi: Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.), University of Milan, Via Morino 8, 25048 Edolo, Italy

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 6, 1-19

Abstract: Arnica montana L. is an alpine herbaceous plant typical of nutrient-poor grasslands. It is a popular medicinal plant for the treatment of bruises, cuts and pain, and it is also an endangered alpine species. For this reason, the sustainable production of inflorescences instead of the spontaneous collection of plant material, coupled with the use of local ecotypes, should be incentivized. Inflorescences of a wild accession of arnica were compared versus an accession cultivated in Valsaviore (Italian Alps) in terms of seed germination performance and phytochemical characterization by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) techniques. The germination percentage was high (>75%) for both cultivated and wild seeds. The NMR spectra of arnica extracts were very similar and confirmed the presence of sesquiterpene compounds, esters of helenaline and dehydroelenaline. A significant high percentage of acetic acid methyl ester (38 μg/g) and the 2-methyl methyl ester of propanoic acid (31 μg/g) were found in cultivated arnica and were probably associated with fermentation processes linked to the traditional method of air drying on a trellis. The possibility of growing A. montana and a controlled local first transformation are important to incentivize local, good quality and sustainable production. The growing of seedlings “in loco” could be of great interest both for farmers and for natural conservation purposes.

Keywords: alpine medicinal plants; mountain agriculture; sesquiterpene lactones; VOCs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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