Medicinal & Aromatic Plants
Open Access

Abstract

Genus Terminalia: A phytochemical and Biological Review

Fahmy NM, Al-Sayed E and Singab AN

Context: Terminalia is the second largest genus of family Combretaceae. The plants of this genus were used in traditional folk medicine worldwide.

Objectives: This review is a comprehensive literature survey of different Terminalia species regarding their biological activities and their isolated phytochemicals. The aim of this review is to attract the attention to unexplored potential of natural products obtained from Terminalia species, thereby contributing to the development of new therapeutic alternatives that may improve the health of people suffering from various health problems.

Materials and methods: All the available information on genus Terminalia was compiled from electronic databases such as Medline, Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect, SCOPUS, Chemical Abstract Search and Springer Link.

Results: Phytochemical research has led to the isolation of different classes of compounds including, tannins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, triterpenes, triterpenoidal glycosides, lignan and lignan derivatives. Crude extracts and isolated components of different Terminalia species showed a wide spectrum of biological activities.

Conclusion: phytochemical studies on genus Terminalia have revealed a variety of chemical constituents. Numerous biological activities have validated the use of this genus in treatment of various diseases in traditional medicine. Further studies are needed to explore the bioactive compounds responsible for the pharmacological effects and their mechanism of action.