Medicinal Plants Used in Sulawesi: A Review of Phenolic Diversity, Phytochemical Evidence, and Anti-Inflammatory Potential

Wahyuni Agus; Andi Ameilia Sari Riandika

doi:10.32734/jcnar.v8i1.26929

Authors

Wahyuni Agus Universitas Negeri Makassar, Makassar, 90224, Indonesia
Andi Ameilia Sari Riandika Universitas Negeri Makassar, Makassar, 90224, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32734/jcnar.v8i1.26929

Keywords:

Medicinal Plants, Sulawesi, Phenolic, Phytochemical, Anti-inflammatory

Abstract

Sulawesi possesses substantial medicinal plant diversity and traditional knowledge, but ethnobotanical, phytochemical, and pharmacological evidence remains dispersed across different studies. This review aimed to integrate information on medicinal plants used in Sulawesi, Indonesia, with emphasis on phenolic diversity, phytochemical evidence, and anti-inflammatory potential. A structured literature review was conducted using publications retrieved from Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed, Google Scholar, SpringerLink, and Wiley Online Library. The evidence was synthesized into three datasets covering medicinal plant diversity, phenolic compounds and analytical methods, and anti-inflammatory activity. A total of 132 medicinal plant species were identified across six provinces of Sulawesi. Phytochemical evidence was available for 20 species, revealing diverse phenolic classes and various analytical approaches for their characterization. Among these species, nine showed documented anti-inflammatory activity supported by varying levels of in vitro, in vivo, and/or in silico evidence, with clinical evidence additionally available for Psidium guajava and Curcuma longa. The integrated findings demonstrate substantial phenolic diversity and promising anti-inflammatory potential among medicinal plants used in Sulawesi. However, a direct relationship between specific phenolic constituents and anti-inflammatory effects remains insufficiently established, highlighting the need for further compound-specific phytochemical and pharmacological investigations.

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