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Review
. 2021 Dec 14;10(12):2751.
doi: 10.3390/plants10122751.

Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licorice): A Comprehensive Review on Its Phytochemistry, Biological Activities, Clinical Evidence and Toxicology

Shadma Wahab  1 , Sivakumar Annadurai  1 , Shahabe Saquib Abullais  2 , Gotam Das  3 , Wasim Ahmad  4 , Md Faruque Ahmad  5 , Geetha Kandasamy  6 , Rajalakshimi Vasudevan  7 , Md Sajid Ali  8 , Mohd Amir  9
Affiliations
Review

Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licorice): A Comprehensive Review on Its Phytochemistry, Biological Activities, Clinical Evidence and Toxicology

Shadma Wahab et al. Plants (Basel). .

Abstract

There are more than 30 species of Glycyrrhiza genus extensively spread worldwide. It was the most prescribed herb in Ancient Egyptian, Roman, Greek, East China, and the West from the Former Han era. There are various beneficial effects of licorice root extracts, such as treating throat infections, tuberculosis, respiratory, liver diseases, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and immunodeficiency. On the other hand, traditional medicines are getting the attraction to treat many diseases. Therefore, it is vital to screen the medicinal plants to find the potential of new compounds to treat chronic diseases such as respiratory, cardiovascular, anticancer, hepatoprotective, etc. This work comprehensively reviews ethnopharmacological uses, phytochemistry, biological activities, clinical evidence, and the toxicology of licorice, which will serve as a resource for future clinical and fundamental studies. An attempt has been made to establish the pharmacological effect of licorice in different diseases. In addition, the focus of this review article is on the molecular mechanism of licorice extracts and their four flavonoids (isoliquiritigenin, liquiritigenin, lichalocone, and glabridin) pharmacologic activities. Licorice could be a natural alternative for current therapy to exterminate new emerging disorders with mild side effects. This review will provide systematic insights into this ancient drug for further development and clinical use.

Keywords: Glycyrrhiza glabra; anticancer; cardiovascular; hepatoprotective; phytochemistry; respiratory infection.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author confirms that this article content has no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Licorice cultivated countries on the world map.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Possible anticancer mechanism of action of Glycyrrhiza glabra.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Pharmacological efficacy of G. glabra against different cancer and their respective cell lines.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Glycyrrhiza glabra’s probable anti-asthmatic mechanism of action.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Molecular events involved in COPD’s pathogenesis and their possible modulation by Glycyrrhiza glabra.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Possible mode of action of licorice against cardiovascular disease.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Proposed hepatoprotective effect of G. glabra.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Toxicological effect of licorice.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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