PHYTOCHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS AND BIOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF EXTRACTS FROM ACONITUM SP. - A SHORT REVIEW

摘要

Used for hundreds of years in traditional medicine and ethnomedicine, the species of the genus Aconitum are the subject of many contemporary studies that focus on the biological and pharmacological functions of the active principles isolated (and purified) from extracts obtained from plants roots and/ or aerial parts. Well known for its strong neurotoxicity, aconitine and some other diterpenoid alkaloids extracted from Aconitum species or their derivatives have shown significant anticancer and apoptotic, analgesic, antimicrobial, antifungal, antidiarrheal and antioxidant potentials, as well as a high effectiveness in treating rheumatic fever, joint pains and some endocrine conditions. Strating from the toxic potential of these plants, phytochemical, pharmacological and toxicological studies are highly needed for improving their quality and safe usage.