Genus Ribes Linn. (Grossulariaceae): A comprehensive review of traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology and clinical applications.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The genus Ribes Linn., which belongs to the Grossulariaceae family, contains 160 species distributed mainly in temperate and cold regions of the Northern Hemisphere. There are 59 species in southwest, northwest and northeast China. Some species of Ribes have been used as traditional and local medicines for the treatment of glaucoma, cardiovascular disease, stomachache, hepatitis, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and other ailments. However, the data provided in recent years have not been collated and compared. AIM OF THE STUDY: This review aims to summarize the current status of ethnopharmacological uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, clinical applications, and pharmacokinetics of the genus Ribes to better understand the therapeutic potential of the genus Ribes in the future and hope to provide a relatively novel perspective for further clinical application on the genus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The literature on Ribes was collected through a series of scientific search engines including Elsevier, ACS, Springer, Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar, Baidu Scholar, Wiley, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and books. RESULTS: Ribes species have been used for detoxification, glaucoma, cardiovascular disease, stomachache, hepatitis, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and other ailments. These plants mainly contain phenolic glycosides, flavonoids, proanthocyanidins, polysaccharides, etc. Most traditional uses are related to biological activity and have been confirmed by modern research. Pharmacological studies in vitro and in vivo revealed that the extracts and pure compounds possessed significant hypolipidemic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antibacterial, and antiviral activity, eyesight protection and other effects. CONCLUSIONS: The traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and clinical applications described in this article explained that the Ribes species has numerous activities, and these findings will promote further action in the area of mechanism research. However, very few preclinical and clinical studies have focused on the toxicology and pharmacokinetics of crude extracts and pure compounds from the genus Ribes. Moreover, several clinical evidence to support the health benefits of Ribes plants. The development of new medicines based on Ribes species as ingredients may be restricted. The pharmacological activity, clinical efficacy and safety of Ribes species need to be verified by systematic and comprehensive preclinical studies and clinical trials.

Chemotaxonomic Screening of Seed Oils from the Family Saxifragaceae and Comparison with Data on Seed Oils from Grossulariaceae Obtained from Literature.

Seeds of 25 members of the family Saxifragaceae, 1 × Astilbe, 1 × Darmera, 1 × Leptarrhena, 1 × Tellima, 3 × Mitella, and 18 × Saxifraga were investigated regarding oil content, as well as composition and content of fatty acids and vitamin E active compounds. The results were compared with results obtained from literature for members of the genus Ribes belonging to the closely related family Grossulariaceae to find chemometric differences between the different genera and between members of the family Saxifragaceae and Grossulariaceae, respectively. Members of the family Saxifragaceae are dominated by high amounts of linoleic and α-linolenic acid which together account for about 80% of the total fatty acids. While α-linolenic acid is characteristic for members of the genus Saxifraga, in other genera, linoleic acid is predominant. In comparison to members of the family Saxifragaceae members of the family Grossulariaceae also contain γ-linolenic acid and stearidonic acid which allow a significant differentiation between both families. By principle component analysis, members of both families were divided into three distinct groups, i) species with a high content of α-linolenic acid (genus Saxifraga), ii) species with high amounts of γ-linolenic acid and stearidonic acid (genus Ribes), and iii) species with higher amounts of linoleic acid (other members of the family Saxifragaceae). The composition of the vitamin E active compounds was characterized by a high content of γ-tocopherol in most members of the family Saxifragaceae, but no chemotaxonomic relevance.

Advances in functional research of antioxidants and organoleptic traits in berry crops.

Berry species are economically-important crops worldwide and represent an invaluable source of vitamins and other health-related compounds. Species belonging to the families Rosaceae, Ericaceae and Grossulariaceae provide the most popular fruits, showing a strong diversity in natural and breeding populations as to berry traits (fruit type, size, color, flavor, antioxidant capacity), resistance to a/biotic stress, adaptation to different environment/culture conditions. The small genome size of most diploid berry genera is a remarkable feature for last-generation genomics technologies, molecular genetics and functional studies. This review will cover the literature dealing with molecular research in berry crops, focusing on antioxidant- and flavor-related compounds.

Distribution and contents of phenolic compounds in eighteen Scandinavian berry species.

Berries contain a wide range of phenolic compounds in different conjugated forms, a fact that makes their simultaneous analysis a difficult task. In this work, soluble and insoluble phenolic compounds were identified and quantified in 18 species of berries by reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography combined with diode array detection. The analytical results and literature data were used for the identification of the predominant conjugated hydroxycinnamic acids, flavonol glycosides, and anthocyanins in berries from six families, viz. Grossulariaceae, Ericaceae, Rosaceae, Empetraceae, Elaeagnaceae, and Caprifoliaceae. The study showed distinctive similarities among berry species of the same family in the distribution of conjugated forms of phenolic compounds but differences in chromatographic profiles of conjugates and compositions of aglycones especially in the case of anthocyanins. The chromatographic profiles of chokeberry and the related sweet rowanberry (Rosaceae) were exceptionally similar. These data are informative to studies on the authenticity of berry raw materials as well as to those on the evaluation of berries as sources of phenolic compounds.

Ether-linked biflavonoids from Quintinia acutifolia.

The New Zealand tree Quintinia acutifolia has yielded four biflavonoids, the new 2,3,2'',3''-tetrahydroochnaflavone (3), and its 7,7''-di-O-methyl derivative (1). The rare 7-O-methyl-2,3,2'',3''-tetrahydroochnaflavone (2) and 2'',3''-dihydroochnaflavone (4), both previously identified only from members of the Ochnaceae, were also isolated. Structures were determined by spectroscopic methods. This is the first report of biflavonoids from the Grossulariaceae.