An Overview of Genus <i>Malachra</i> L.—Ethnobotany, Phytochemistry, and Pharmacological Activity
2022
Leonor Cervantes-Ceballos | Jorge Sánchez-Hoyos | Fredys Sanchez-Hoyos | Erick Torres-Niño | Jairo Mercado-Camargo | Amparo Echeverry-Gómez | Karick Jotty Arroyo | Esther del Olmo-Fernández | Harold Gómez-Estrada
The genus <i>Malachra</i> L. belongs to the family Malvaceae. It includes herbs or subshrubs of nine accepted species with approximately thirty synonyms, and it has been widely used in community folk medicine to treat health problems including inflammation, nasal obstruction, leishmaniasis, malaria, childbirth, kidney disorders, fever, respiratory tract diseases, among others. From the genus <i>Malachra</i> L., flavonoids, steroids, triterpenes, anthocyanins, leucoanthocyanins, saponins, carbohydrates, phenols, glycosides, and alkaloids have been isolated and identified. Some pharmacological reports have indicated that the genus has antidiarrheal, antiepileptic, antiulcerogenic, antioxidant, anticonvulsant, antiviral, anticancer, antibacterial, anthelmintic, and hepatoprotective properties. However, there have been limited studies of bioactive molecules with pharmacological and biological activities associated with <i>Malachra alceifolia</i> Jacq., <i>Malachra capitata</i> (L.) L., <i>Malachra fasciata</i> Jacq., <i>Malachra radiata</i> (L.) L., <i>Malachra ruderalis</i> Gürke., <i>Malachra rudis</i> Benth., <i>Malachra helodes</i> Mart., <i>Malachra urens</i> Poit. ex Ledeb. & Alderstam., and <i>Malachra officinalis</i> Klotzsch. In this review, we consider the conservation of these species to save the ancestral knowledge of their traditional use in populations, and their pharmacological potential for future studies in search of alternatives for solutions to diseases in humans and animals and tools for the design and search of potential bioactive compounds against infectious and non-infectious agents.
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