Phytochemcal account: Phyllanthus reticulatus Poir.

Phyllanthus reticulatus Poir has long been used in the traditional medications for the treatment of various human diseases most notably diarrhoea, asthma, diabetes and inflammation. Several chromatographic techniques were used to isolate the main active constituents from different parts of the plants using different solvents. Over the last few decades, 57 compounds have been isolated and identified from the P. reticulatus including 12 terpenoids, 4 steroids, 7 flavonoids, 8 phenolics, 8 lignins, 8 tannins, 5 megastigmane glycosides, 3 diterpenoids, 1 purine derivative, 2 acid deravetives and 1 fatty alcohol. This review provided a comprehensive overview of the phytochemistry of P. reticulatus based on the unified review of literature. The review suggests for further avenues of research on the phytochemistry of P. reticulatus to isolate and decipher the unidentified lead compounds for future pharmaceutical applications.