Ruta montana(L.) L.: An insight into its medicinal value, phytochemistry, biological properties, and toxicity

Abstract

Ruta montana (RM) is a medicinal and aromatic plant (MAP) used in folk medicine, especially in North Africa, to treat digestive, infectious, respiratory, neurological, gynecological, and diabetic diseases. The current work aims to review the scientifically validated ethno-medicinal usage, bioactivities and phytochemistry of RM, in order to provide data support for further investigations. Data were procured from PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and PubChem. The present study revealed that RM could be used to manage many diseases involved in public health problems, such as diabetes, hypertension, neurological disorders, infections, reproductive system disorders, and cancer. It might also replace chemical insecticides and fungicides since it exhibits antifungal, insecticidal, and larvicidal properties. RM extracts also contain mainly coumarins and alkaloids. The volatile oil of RM is characterized by an abundance of ketone compounds and 2-undecanone as major constituents. In the case of a high-dose administration, RM infusion can cause poisoning through the oral path. Thus, in-depth in vivo pharmacological studies and clinical trials are needed to transmute the traditional applications of RM into scientific-based information.

Moroccan Medicinal Plants Used to Treat Cancer: Ethnomedicinal Study and Insights into Pharmacological Evidence

“…On the other hand, the Lamiaceae and Asteraceae families have been linked to a variety of pharmacological effects, including antibacterial, antifungal, antiinflammatory, antidiabetic, antiviral, antioxidant, and insecticidal properties [51][52][53][54]. ese biological properties are particularly related to their valuable chemical constituents, which have shown promising therapeutic potential [18,55].…”

Ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacological activities of Celtis australis: A review

“…In bark, only triterpenoids and bacteriohopanoid were reported (Figure 5C). Furthermore, as shown in Table 2, besides the plant's parts other factors may be responsible for the variation of the extract's chemical composition such as the plant's origin, the extraction solvent (42), and the harvest season (6).…”

Studies on the Accumulation of Secondary Metabolites and Evaluation of Biological Activity of In Vitro Cultures of Ruta montana L. in Temporary Immersion Bioreactors

“…Ruta montana is widespread in the Mediterranean region since it grows in sandy and dry areas, specifically in countries such as Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. These plants also grow in Greece, Portugal, and Turkey in Europe [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]. The diverse chemical composition of the species includes compounds from groups of alkaloids, flavonoids (flavanols, including catechins and flavones), coumarins (hydroxycoumarins and furanocoumarins), organic acids, tannins, among other essential oils (sesquiterpenes and monoterpenes).…”

“…The species further contains furanocoumarins, such as bergapten and xanthotoxin, which are used in dermatology to treat vitiligo and psoriasis [ 11 , 12 ]. Although these compounds have a therapeutic effect, they also have some toxic effects, such as photodermatitis as well as kidney and liver damage [ 6 ]. Therefore, their application should be controlled.…”

“…The extracts of R. montana also show antioxidant activity due to the high content of phenolic compounds. The compounds have the ability to scavenge free radicals [ 2 , 6 ]. The essential oil obtained from R. montana has antifungal, insecticidal, and larvicidal properties, which showed an inhibitory effect on the growth of the Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger species [ 2 , 3 ].…”