A Review of the Traditional Uses, Phytochemistry and Biological Activities of the Genus Santolina

Abstract

The genus is a taxonomically complex group of plant species widely distributed in the Mediterranean flora and used in traditional medicine since ancient times for their biological properties, including antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, digestive, and analgesic activities. Phytochemical investigations of species have revealed the presence of terpenoids as the main bioactive constituents of the genus. Coumarins and flavonoids were also identified. This review deals, for the first time, with information on the traditional uses, chemical profile, and biological properties of plants of the genus in order to provide input for future research prospects.

Chemical characterization, antidiabetic and anticancer activities of Santolina chamaecyparissus

“…Essential oils obtained from plants emerged as the major source of fragrance and are used as medicines; an important component in aromatherapy, and used as flavouring agents in foods, medicinal products, and cosmetics ( Ali, 2001 ). S. chamaecyparissus is an important medicinal plant of the Mediterranean region and has been reported as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticandidal, antibacterial, antifungal, CNS depressant, and anti‐cholinergic ( Tundis and Loizzo, 2018 ). GC-MS analysis of S. chamaecyparissus yielded 44 chemical constituents in EAE and the major constituents were tetrapentacontane (27.15%), eicosyl acetate (8.40%), and 2-methylhexacosane (6.87%).…”

Chemical composition of essential oil from the aerial parts of Santolina rosmarinifolia L. a wild Algerian medicinal plant

“…and S. oblongifoliaBoiss. have been reported in traditional medicine in Spain, Italy, Mediterranean area and India, (Tundis & Loizzo, 2018). In the Algerian traditional pharmacopoeia, S. rosmarinifoliaL.…”

“…These aerial parts are indeed used as vermifuge, stomachic, antispasmodic (Beloued, 2005) and widely pre-registered traditionally as a healing plant (Boudjelal et al, 2013;Sarri et al, 2014). Several Santolina species have been studied for their antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory activities (Tundis & Loizzo, 2018).The infusion from S. rosmarinifolia fresh or dried flower heads was reported to have antipyretic, antihypertensive, hepatoprotective and intestinal anti-inflammatory properties (Ioannou et al, 2007).…”

Biological Activities and Chemical Composition of Santolina africana Jord. et Fourr. Aerial Part Essential Oil from Algeria: Occurrence of Polyacetylene Derivatives

“…The chemical composition of the essential oils of species belonging to the genus Santolina has been widely studied [10]. S. chamaecyparissus is probably the most investigated species of this genus [11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22].…”