Plants (Jun 2023)

An Insight into <i>Citrus medica</i> Linn.: A Systematic Review on Phytochemical Profile and Biological Activities

  • Nadia Benedetto,
  • Vittorio Carlucci,
  • Immacolata Faraone,
  • Ludovica Lela,
  • Maria Ponticelli,
  • Daniela Russo,
  • Claudia Mangieri,
  • Nikolay T. Tzvetkov,
  • Luigi Milella

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12122267
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 12
p. 2267

Abstract

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Plant species are a reservoir of natural compounds that can potentially be used to treat different diseases. Citrus medica Linn. belonging to the Rutaceae family, has been used for centuries in medicine for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antiviral, and antihyperglycemic properties. These activities are ascribable not only to the presence of health-promoting macronutrients and micronutrients, such as carbohydrates, minerals, amino acids, and vitamins, but also to specialized metabolites, such as flavonoids (apigenin, hesperetin, hesperidin, naringin, naringenin, rutin, quercetin, and diosmin), coumarins (citropten, scoparone, and bergapten), terpenes (limonene, γ-terpinene, limonin, and nomilin), and phenolic acids (p-coumaric acid, trans-ferulic acid, and chlorogenic acid). In recent years, particular attention has been focused on the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial activity, antidiabetic, anticancer, and neuroprotective activity of C. medica. However, although many studies have reported this species’ chemical and biological properties, the literature has never been analyzed via a systematic approach. For this reason, using PubMed and Scopus as databases, we performed a systematic review of C. medica’s chemical composition and biological properties to inspire new research approaches and increase its curative application.

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