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. 2019 Mar 22;20(6):1463.
doi: 10.3390/ijms20061463.

A Systematic Review of Phytochemistry, Pharmacology and Pharmacokinetics on Astragali Radix: Implications for Astragali Radix as a Personalized Medicine

Zhenzhen Guo  1 , Yanmei Lou  2 , Muyan Kong  3 , Qing Luo  4 , Zhongqiu Liu  5   6 , Jinjun Wu  7
Affiliations

A Systematic Review of Phytochemistry, Pharmacology and Pharmacokinetics on Astragali Radix: Implications for Astragali Radix as a Personalized Medicine

Zhenzhen Guo et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Astragali radix (AR) is one of the most widely used traditional Chinese herbal medicines. Modern pharmacological studies and clinical practices indicate that AR possesses various biological functions, including potent immunomodulation, antioxidant, anti-inflammation and antitumor activities. To date, more than 200 chemical constituents have been isolated and identified from AR. Among them, isoflavonoids, saponins and polysaccharides are the three main types of beneficial compounds responsible for its pharmacological activities and therapeutic efficacy. After ingestion of AR, the metabolism and biotransformation of the bioactive compounds were extensive in vivo. The isoflavonoids and saponins and their metabolites are the major type of constituents absorbed in plasma. The bioavailability barrier (BB), which is mainly composed of efflux transporters and conjugating enzymes, is expected to have a significant impact on the bioavailability of AR. This review summarizes studies on the phytochemistry, pharmacology and pharmacokinetics on AR. Additionally, the use of AR as a personalized medicine based on the BB is also discussed, which may provide beneficial information to achieve a better and more accurate therapeutic response of AR in clinical practice.

Keywords: Astragali radix; personalized medicine; pharmacokinetics; pharmacology; phytochemistry.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ⑩.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ②.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ⑬.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of cancer. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ⑪.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of respiratory diseases. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ⑧.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Several mechanisms linking AR and its main components to the treatment of nervous system diseases. Arrows and bar-headed lines represent signaling activation and inhibition, respectively. The different signaling pathways regulated by AR and its components are numbered ① to ⑧.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Proposed pathways of metabolism and biotransformation of the compounds after administration of AR extracts in vivo.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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