Astragalus L., is one of the largest genuses of flowering plants in the Leguminosae family. Roots of A. membranaceus Bge. var. mongholicus (Bge.) Hsiao, A. membranaceus (Fisch.) Bge. and its processed products are listed in the China Pharmacopeia for “qi deficiency” syndrome treatment. However, more and more researches on other species of Astragalus have been conducted recently. We summarize the recent researches of Astragalus species in phytochemistry and pharmacology. More than 200 constituents, including saponins and flavonoids, obtained from 46 species of Astragalus genus were collected for this article. In pharmacological studies, crude extracts of Astragalus, as well as isolated constituents showed anti-inflammatory, immunostimulant, antioxidative, anti-cancer, antidiabetic, cardioprotective, hepatoprotective, and antiviral activities. The goal of this article is to provide an overview of chemical and pharmacological studies on the Astragalus species over the last 10 years, which could be of value to new drug or food supplement research and development.

Xanthones, as some of the most active components and widely distributed in various herb medicines, have drawn more and more attention in recent years. So far, 168 species of herbal plants belong to 58 genera, 24 families have been reported to contain xanthones. Among them, Calophyllum, Cratoxylum, Cudrania, Garcinia, Gentiana, Hypericum and Swertia genera are plant resources with great development prospect. This paper summarizes the plant resources, bioactivity and the structure-activity relationships (SARs) of xanthones from references published over the last few decades, which may be useful for new drug research and development on xanthones.

Dammarane-type triterpenoids (DTT) widely distribute in various medicinal plants. They have generated a great amount of interest in the field of new drug research and development. Generally, DTT are the main bioactive ingredients abundant in Araliaceae plants, such as Panax ginseng, P. japonicas, P. notoginseng, and P. quinquefolium. Aside from Araliaceae, DTT also distribute in other families, including Betulaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Meliaceae, Rhamnaceae, and Scrophulariaceae. Until now, about 136 species belonging to 46 families have been reported to contain DTT. In this article, the genus classifications of plant sources of the botanicals that contain DTT are reviewed, with particular focus on the NMR spectral features and pharmacological activities based on literature reports, which may be benefit for the development of new drugs or food additives.

Five new compounds, lippianosides A (1), B (2), C (3), D (4), and E (5), along with 26 (6–31) known ones were obtained from the 95% EtOH extract of Lippia triphylla (L. triphylla) aerial parts collected from Rwanda, Africa. Among the known compounds, 11 and 17–30 were isolated from the Lippia genus for the first time. In addition, 12, 13, and 16 were firstly obtained from this species. The structures of them were elucidated by chemical and spectroscopic methods. The antioxidant and triglyceride accumulation inhibition effects of the 31 compounds were examined in L6 cells and HepG2 cells, respectively.

Three new compounds, apetalumosides C₁ (1), D (2), and 1-thio--d-glucopyranosyl(1→1)-1-thio-α-d-glucopyranoside (3), together with twenty-two known ones (4–25) were obtained from the seeds of Lepidium apetalum Willd. Among the known isolates, 5–8, 10–13, 16–20, and 25 were obtained from the genus for the first time; 4, 14, 15, and 21–24 were isolated from the species for the first time. Meanwhile, the NMR data of 16 was first reported here. Their structures were determined by means of chemical and spectroscopic methods. On the other hand, their inhibitory effects on sodium oleate-induced triglyceride (TG) overloading in HepG2 cells were evaluated. As a result, two new compounds (1 and 2), together with known isolates 7–11, 13, 14, 16–18, 20, 21, and 25 possessed significant inhibitory effects in the cells.

It is well known that spirostane-type saponins show various bioactivities. In our on-going program of screening these kinds of constituents from natural products, Yucca schidigera was found to be rich in them, and nine new spirostanol saponins, Yucca spirostanosides A₁ (1), A₂ (2), B₁ (3), B₂ (4), B₃ (5), C₁ (6), C₂ (7), C₃ (8), and D₁ (9), together with five known ones (10–14) were isolated from the plant. Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR and MS spectra, and comparing with published data.