Chemical Constituents and Their Pharmacological Activities from Formosan Annonaceous Plants

The Annonaceous plants are well known as folk medicines for the treatment of septic infections, coughing, hepatomegaly, hepatospleenomegaly, diarrhea and cancers. In the last two decades, eighteen of the Formosan Annonaceous plants (Annona cherimola, A. glabra, A. montana A. muricata, A. reticulata, A. squamosa, A. artemoya (A. cherimola x squamosa), A. purpurea, Artabotrys hexaptalus, A. uncinatus, Cananga odorata, Fissistigma glaucescens, F. oldhamii, Goniothalamus amuyon, Polyalthia longifolia, P. longifolia” Pendula”, Rollinia mucosa, and Uvaria rufa) and one plant collected from Mainland China, F. balansae, have been studied. The chemical constituents were isolated and screened for their biological effects (cardiovascular, cytotoxic and other pharmacological activities). Some of the compounds are potentially useful for the further development of clinical drugs.