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Review
. 2021 Apr 15;26(8):2297.
doi: 10.3390/molecules26082297.

Plant-Based Indole Alkaloids: A Comprehensive Overview from a Pharmacological Perspective

Faisal Omar  1 , Abu Montakim Tareq  1 , Ali M Alqahtani  2 , Kuldeep Dhama  3 , Mohammed Abu Sayeed  1 , Talha Bin Emran  4 , Jesus Simal-Gandara  5
Affiliations
Review

Plant-Based Indole Alkaloids: A Comprehensive Overview from a Pharmacological Perspective

Faisal Omar et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Plant-based indole alkaloids are very rich in pharmacological activities, and the indole nucleus is considered to contribute greatly to these activities. This review's fundamental objective is to summarize the pharmacological potential of indole alkaloids that have been derived from plants and provide a detailed evaluation of their established pharmacological activities, which may contribute to identifying new lead compounds. The study was performed by searching various scientific databases, including Springer, Elsevier, ACS Publications, Taylor and Francis, Thieme, Wiley Online Library, ProQuest, MDPI, and online scientific books. A total of 100 indole compounds were identified and reviewed. The most active compounds possessed a variety of pharmacological activities, including anticancer, antibacterial, antiviral, antimalarial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, analgesic, hypotensive, anticholinesterase, antiplatelet, antidiarrheal, spasmolytic, antileishmanial, lipid-lowering, antimycobacterial, and antidiabetic activities. Although some compounds have potent activity, some only have mild-to-moderate activity. The pharmacokinetic profiles of some of the identified compounds, such as brucine, mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, vindoline, and harmane, were also reviewed. Most of these compounds showed promising pharmacological activity. An in-depth pharmacological evaluation of these compounds should be performed to determine whether any of these indoles may serve as new leads.

Keywords: alkaloids; indole; pharmacokinetic profile; pharmacological activity; scientific databases.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chemical structure of indole.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Antimicrobial activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Antiviral activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Antidepressant activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Anticancer activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Anti-inflammatory activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Analgesic activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Antidiabetic activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Antimalarial activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Antimalarial activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Hypotensive activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Anticholinesterase activity of Indole alkaloids.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Antiplatelet activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Antidiarrheal activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 15
Figure 15
Spasmolytic activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 16
Figure 16
Antileishmanial activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 17
Figure 17
Lipid-lowering activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 18
Figure 18
Antimycobacterial activity of indole alkaloids.
Figure 19
Figure 19
An overview of the pharmacological activities of major indole alkaloids.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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