Litchi (: Litchi chinensis Sonn.): A comprehensive review of phytochemistry, medicinal properties, and product development

Funding Number

2019B030302005

Funding Sponsor

Universidade de Macau

Find in your Library

https://doi.org/10.1039/d1fo01148k

Document Type

Research Article

Publication Title

Food and Function

Publication Date

10-21-2021

doi

10.1039/d1fo01148k

Abstract

Since ancient times, litchi has been well recognized as a functional food for the management of various ailments. Many bioactives, including flavanoids, anthocyanins, phenolics, sesquiterpenes, triterpenes, and lignans, have been identified from litchi with a myriad of biological properties both in vitro and in vivo. In spite of the extensive research progress, systemic reviews regarding the bioactives of litchi are rather scarce. Therefore, it is crucial to comprehensively analyze the pharmacological activities and the structure-activity relationships of the abundant bioactives of litchi. Besides, more and more studies have focused on litchi preservation and development of its by-products, which is significant for enhancing the economic value of litchi. Based on the analysis of published articles and patents, this review aims to reveal the development trends of litchi in the healthcare field by providing a systematic summary of the pharmacological activities of its extracts, its phytochemical composition, and the nutritional and potential health benefits of litchi seed, pulp and pericarp with structure-activity relationship analysis. In addition, its by-products also exhibited promising development potential in the field of material science and environmental protection. Furthermore, this study also provides an overview of the strategies of the postharvest storage and processing of litchi.

First Page

9527

Last Page

9548

This document is currently not available here.

Find this item online

Share

COinS