The present research was conducted to document the usage of medicinal plants, plant parts utilized, and methods of preparation by the people living in Aziziye district, situated in the western part of Erzurum. The medicinal plant species utilized by local public for remedial aims were collected and identified. The related knowledge about conventional herbal medicine was collected, herbarium materials were prepared, and they were deposited in the Herbarium of the Faculty of Science, Atatürk University. A total of 77 medical plants pertaining to 30 families were defined in this research. Amongst these, 62 species grew naturally and 15 species were cultivated. The most widespread medicinal plant families were Asteraceae (14), Rosaceae (7), Lamiaceae (5), and Apiaceae (5). The most widespread preparation was decoction. The ethnobotanical outcomes documented in this study provide practical evidence about the use of medicinal plants among the inhabitants of Aziziye District. Furthermore, the results revealed that the medicinal plants of the region are a major source of herbal drugs for primary healthcare utilized among the rural communities. This study can be utilized as baseline knowledge for further scientific research to improve new plant-based commercial drugs, and may transfer the traditional information as regards usage of medicinal herbs to new generation.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the role of proline (Pro) in relieving UV-B radiation-induced oxidative stress in lettuce. Lettuce seedlings were exposed to 3.3 W m⁻² UV-B radiation for 12 h after pre-treatment sprayed with 20 mM Pro. The data for malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), endogenous Pro level, the activities of antioxidant enzymes [superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and peroxidase (POD)], total phenolic concentration, antioxidant capacity, expression of phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), γ-tocopherol methyltransferase (γ-TMT) and proline dehydrogenase (ProDH) genes, phytohormone levels such as abscisic acid (ABA), gibberellic acid (GA), indole acetic acid (IAA) and salicylic acid (SA), soluble sugars and organic acids were recorded. It was found that Pro alleviated the oxidative damage in the seedlings of lettuce as demonstrated by lower lipid peroxidation and H₂O₂ content, increasing the endogenous Pro level, the activity of antioxidant enzymes, total phenolic concentration and the antioxidant capacity. Additionally, it was revealed that exogenous application of Pro enhanced the levels of GA, IAA, the concentrations of soluble sugars and organic acids and expressions of PAL, γ-TMT and ProDH genes as compared to the control. The results obtained in this study suggest that pre-treatment with exogenous Pro provides important contributions to the increase in the UV-B tolerance of lettuce by regulating the biochemical mechanisms of UV-B response.