Ethnobotany, Phytochemistry, and Biological Activities of the Genus Cordyline
Romuald Tematio Fouedjou,
Bienvenu Tsakem,
Xavier Siwe-Noundou,
Hervet P. Dongmo Fogang,
Aphalaine Tiombou Donkia,
Beaudelaire Kemvoufo Ponou,
Madan Poka,
Patrick H. Demana,
Rémy B. Teponno,
Léon Azefack Tapondjou
Affiliations
Romuald Tematio Fouedjou
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Bienvenu Tsakem
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Xavier Siwe-Noundou
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, P.O. Box 218, Pretoria 0208, South Africa
Hervet P. Dongmo Fogang
Department of Physiological Sciences and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical, Sciences, University of Garoua, Garoua P.O. Box 317, Cameroon
Aphalaine Tiombou Donkia
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Beaudelaire Kemvoufo Ponou
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Madan Poka
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, P.O. Box 218, Pretoria 0208, South Africa
Patrick H. Demana
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, P.O. Box 218, Pretoria 0208, South Africa
Rémy B. Teponno
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Léon Azefack Tapondjou
Research Unit of Environmental and Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Dschang P.O. Box 67, Cameroon
Cordyline species have a long history in traditional medicine as a basis of treatment for various ailments such as a bloody cough, dysentery, and a high fever. There are about 26 accepted species names in this genus distributed worldwide, including C. fruticosa, C. autralis, C. stricta, C. cannifolia, and C. dracaenosides. This work presents a comprehensive review of the traditional uses of plants of the genus Cordylie and their chemical constituents and biological activities. A bibliographic search was conducted to identify available information on ethnobotany, ethnopharmacology, chemical composition, and biological activities. A total of 98 isolated compounds potentially responsible for most of the traditional medicinal applications have been reported from eight species of Cordyline and are characterised as flavonoid, spirostane, furostane, and cholestane glycosides. Some of these pure compounds, as well as extracts from some species of Cordyline, have exhibited noteworthy anti-oxidant, antiproliferative, antimicrobial, and hypolipidemic activities. Although many of these species have not yet been investigated phytochemically or pharmacologically, they remain a potential source of new bioactive compounds.
