Discovery of anti-inflammatory natural flavonoids: Diverse scaffolds and promising leads for drug discovery

  • Eur J Med Chem. 2023 Nov 15:260:115791. doi: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2023.115791.
Junjie Li  1 ,  Rui Zhao  1 ,  Peiran Miao  1 ,  Fengfeng Xu  1 ,  Jiahao Chen  1 ,  Xiaoying Jiang  1 ,  Zi Hui  2 ,  Liwei Wang  3 ,  Renren Bai  4
Affiliations
  • 1. School of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Key Laboratory of Elemene Class Anti-Cancer Chinese Medicines, Engineering Laboratory of Development and Application of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Traditional Chinese Medicines of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China.
  • 2. School of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Key Laboratory of Elemene Class Anti-Cancer Chinese Medicines, Engineering Laboratory of Development and Application of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Traditional Chinese Medicines of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 3. School of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Key Laboratory of Elemene Class Anti-Cancer Chinese Medicines, Engineering Laboratory of Development and Application of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Traditional Chinese Medicines of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 4. School of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Key Laboratory of Elemene Class Anti-Cancer Chinese Medicines, Engineering Laboratory of Development and Application of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Traditional Chinese Medicines of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
Abstract

Natural products have been utilized for medicinal purposes for millennia, endowing them with a rich source of chemical scaffolds and pharmacological leads for drug discovery. Among the vast array of natural products, Flavonoids represent a prominent class, renowned for their diverse biological activities and promising therapeutic advantages. Notably, their anti-inflammatory properties have positioned them as promising lead compounds for developing novel drugs combating various inflammatory diseases. This review presents a comprehensive overview of Flavonoids, highlighting their manifold anti-inflammatory activities and elucidating the underlying pathways in mediating inflammation. Furthermore, this review encompasses systematical classification of Flavonoids, related anti-inflammatory targets, involved in vitro and in vivo test models, and detailed statistical analysis. We hope this review will provide researchers engaged in active natural products and anti-inflammatory drug discovery with practical information and potential leads.

Keywords
Anti-inflammatory activities; Drug discovery; Flavonoids; Natural product; Scaffolds; Targets.