In this review article, the phytochemistry of the species belonging to the Araucariaceae family is explored. Among these, in particular, it is given a wide overview on the phytochemical profile of Wollemia genus, for the first time. In addition to this, the ethnopharmacology and the general biological activities associated to the Araucariaceae species are singularly described. Lastly, the chemotaxonomy at the genus and family levels is described and detailed.

The concept of functional foods was born in Japan in the 1980s. They are foods that were developed specifically to promote health or reduce the risk of disease. Functional foods have not already been defined by the legislation in Europe. Generally, they are considered as those foods which are intended to be consumed as part of the normal diet and which contain biologically active components which offer the potential of enhanced health or reduced risk of disease. Attention concerning this category of foods has grown, new products have appeared in the European market and interest has turned to define the standards and guidelines for the development and promotion of this kind of foods. In the European Union, there is harmonised legislation on health claims, while compounds, ingredients, plants are still regulated only at national level. The question of traditional use and the role of European Food Safety Authority as European Authority for Food Safety will be examined.

Herbs are used in Europe as medicinal products, food, food supplements, and related products. This paper will discuss the concepts of Traditional Herbal Medicines and Traditional Plant Food Supplements, defined in European legislation under differing legal frameworks, regarding Traditional Plant Food Supplements (including Claims Regulation) and the role of the European Food Safety Authority in health claims.

Herein, a comprehensive review is given focusing on the chemical profiles of the essential oils (EOs), non-volatile compounds, ethnobotany, and biological activities of different Haplophyllum (Rutaceae family) species. To gather the relevant data, all the scientific databases, including Scopus, ISI-WOS (Institute of Scientific Information-Web of Science), and PubMed and highly esteemed publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, Taylor and Francis, etc., were systematically retrieved and reviewed. A wide array of valuable groups of natural compounds, e.g., terpenoids, coumarins, alkaloids, lignans, flavonoids, and organic acids have been isolated and subsequently characterized in different organic extracts of a number of Haplophyllum species. In addition, some remarkable antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, cytotoxic, antileishmanial, and antialgal effects as well as promising remedial therapeutic properties have been well-documented for some species of the genus Haplophyllum.

In this review, the relevance of the plant species belonging to the Pedicularis L. genus has been considered from different points of view. Particular emphasis was given to phytochemistry and ethnopharmacology, since several classes of natural compounds have been reported within this genus and many of its species are well known to be employed in the traditional medicines of many Asian countries. Some important conclusions on the chemotaxonomic and chemosystematic aspects of the genus have also been provided for the first time. Actually, this work represents the first total comprehensive review on this genus.