Hagar M. Mohamed
1,2 
, Bayan E. Ainousah
3, Gamal A. Mohamed
4, Ehab Saad Elkhayat
5,6, Sabrin R. M. Ibrahim
7,8* 1 Department of Medical Laboratory Analysis, College of Medical & Health Sciences, Liwa University, Abu Dhabi 41009, United Arab of Emirates
2 Department of Applied Medical Chemistry, Medical Research Institute, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt
3 Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, 21955 Makkah, Saudi Arabia
4 Department of Natural Products and Alternative Medicine, Faculty of Pharmacy, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia
5 Michael Sayegh, Faculty of Pharmacy, Aqaba University of Technology, Aqaba 77110, Jordan
6 Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut branch, Assiut, Egypt
7 Department of Chemistry, Preparatory Year Program, Batterjee Medical College, Jeddah, 21442, Saudi Arabia
8 Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Assiut University, Assiut 71526, Egypt
Abstract
Edgeworthia genus (family Thymelaeaceae) plants are used traditionally for high-quality paper manufacturing, as well as for treating various ailments such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, cardiovascular and eye diseases, neuralgia, arthralgia, muscle tension, pain, bruise, hoarseness, and swelling. These plants possess diverse pharmacological activities: antidiabetic, anti-obesity, anti-osteoporosis, cardiac and reno-protective, polymerase β lyase inhibition, and anti-HIV. This genus is rich in diverse chemical constituents such as flavonoids, coumarins, terpenoids, alkaloids, and phenolics. The current work aimed to review the reported literature on this genus, including secondary metabolites and their bioactivities. A literature search (1974–September 2024) was conducted on different databases (Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed), as well as scientific publishers (Springer, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, Elsevier, JACS, and Bentham). More than 240 compounds were characterized mainly from E. chrysantha and E. gardneri. The reported studies identified bioactive compounds such as daphnoretin, a coumarin with anti-osteoporotic and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities; biflavonoids like daphnodorin dimers with strong α-glucosidase inhibition; and macrocyclic daphnane orthoesters showing potent anti-HIV effects. The reported findings pointed out the significance of Edgeworthia species that support their traditional and medicinal uses. However, further investigations to explore the toxicity profiles, mechanisms of action, and possible clinical applications of this genus are required.