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Review
. 2025 Aug 14:16:1604071.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1604071. eCollection 2025.

Pharmacological properties and therapeutic potential of berberine: a comprehensive review

Ke-Qin Fan #  1   2 , Liangming Zhang #  3 , Fangyu Song #  1   2 , Yue-Hui Zhang  2 , Tong Chen  1 , Xiang Cheng  3 , Ning Su  2 , Yan Zou  2 , Ting Yu  2 , Futing Tan  2 , Wenhao Xu  3 , Zijun Yan  1   3
Affiliations
Review

Pharmacological properties and therapeutic potential of berberine: a comprehensive review

Ke-Qin Fan et al. Front Pharmacol. .

Abstract

In recent decades, the pharmacological properties of botanical drugs have been investigated with increasing depth, offering novel insights into their potential for enhancing healthcare. Berberine (BBR) is an alkaloid extracted from the roots, rhizomes and stem tubers of plants such as Coptis chinensis, Phellodendron amurense, Radix berberidis, and several other plants, which is used not only as an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial agent, but also for the treatment of cancer and chronic diseases. BBR has demonstrated remarkable therapeutic efficacy in the management of disorders affecting the nervous, cardiovascular, and endocrine systems, characterized by its high safety profile and minimal adverse effects. Despite the substantial progress made in understanding BBR's pharmacodynamics, its precise mechanisms of action remain incompletely elucidated and warrant further systematic investigation. This study provides an extensive review of the latest pharmacological findings related to berberine and its therapeutic advancements, offering strong evidence for future research and clinical implementation.

Keywords: application prospects; berberine; pharmacodynamics; pharmacological properties; therapeutic potential.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Technological road-map.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The mechanism of berberine’s action on the Nervous system.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
The mechanism of berberine’s action on the Cardiovascular system.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
The mechanism of berberine’s action on the Endocrine system.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
The mechanism of berberine’s action on the Digestive system.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
The mechanism of berberine’s action on the Reproductive system.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
The mechanism of berberine’s action on cancer.
FIGURE 8
FIGURE 8
The antibacterial mechanism of berberine.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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