Progress of genus Hemerocallis in traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology

ABSTRACT

The plants included in genus Hemerocallis have a history of traditional use in medicine, food, and ornamentation, and they are widely cultivated in Asia, Europe, and North America. However, up to now, a comprehensive summary, especially concerning its chemical constituents and biological activities, is still lacking. Statistics as of 31 December 2020, showed that a total of 266 secondary metabolites including 110 volatile components, 41 flavonoids, 39 alkaloids, 29 terpenoids, 14 anthraquinones, 15 phenylpropanoids and 18 other types of compounds have been found in Hemerocallis plants. Meanwhile, modern pharmaceutical research has shown that many bioactive constituents display versatile pharmacological activities, such as anti-depression, antibacterial, anti-tumour, anti-oxidative, insecticide, sedative and hypnotic, thus providing a scientific basis for the further exploitation and utilisation of this important resource.

KEYWORDS:

• Hemerocallis
• traditional uses
• phytochemistry
• pharmacology

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Shanxi Scholarship Council of China [2020-013] and the National Natural Science Foundation of China [31670328, 31270383].