Abstract
The mulberry tree (Morus alba) plays a key role in agriculture, and its different parts have been used as popular Traditional Chinese Medicines for thousands of years. There are 16 species belonging to the Morus genus. Among them, 11 species distribute in China, most of which have been used as the substitutes of M. alba in local provinces. This review summarizes the structural characters of polyphenols, the main components in Morus, including Diels–Alder-type adducts, flavonoids, 2-arylbenzofurans, and stilbenes, and also their related bioactivities in the last 10 years.
Acknowledgments
Some studies of relevant polyphenols in this review were financially supported by the Special Foundation for the Major Project of the National Science and Technology, China (No. 2009ZX09311-004).