Cornus officinalis Sieb.: An updated review on the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, and pharmacokinetics

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Cornus officinalis Sieb. et Zucc., belonging to the family Cornaceae, has a history of nearly two thousand years of use in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and has also been widely applied in traditional medicine across East Asia. Its earliest record can be traced back to the Shennong Ben Cao Jing. In the theory of TCM, C. officinalis is characterized by its sour, astringent, and warming properties and has long been used to treat conditions such as dizziness and tinnitus, as well as conditions affecting the lumbar and knee regions, impotence, spermatorrhea, and profuse sweating. In recent years, C. officinalis has attracted worldwide attention as an important medicinal due to its pharmacological activity especially in nervous and immune systems, and multiple uses. AIM OF THE WORK: The current review aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, toxicity, quality control, and clinical applications of C. officinalis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The relevant information of C. officinalis was obtained from several databases including Web of Science, PubMed, ACS Publications, Google Scholar, Baidu Scholar, CNKI, Ph.D. and MSc dissertations, using "Cornus officinalis", "Cornus officinalis Sieb. et Zucc.", and "" as keywords. After eliminating repetitive and low-quality reports, the remaining reports were analysed and summarized to prepare this review. The network analysis diagram of 'C. officinalis-component-pathway-disease-pharmacological activity ' was constructed by Cytoscape. RESULTS: C. officinalis has been historically utilized as a traditional medicine to treat various diseases, including infectious, inflammatory, neurological, and urogenital disorders. 353 compounds have been identified in C. officinalis, including iridoids, tannins, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, flavonoids, phenolic acids, organic acids, polysaccharides, essential oils, as well as triterpenes and steroids. The plant extracts and compounds showed various pharmacological activities such as antidiabetic, neuroprotective, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, nephroprotective, and anticancer. In addition, C. officinalis has found applications in the food and cosmetics industry. CONCLUSION: A review of literature shows C. officinalis has pharmacological properties valuable in treating diseases, particularly for neuroprotective and metabolic disorders. Despite a wide spectrum of effects from specific compounds, research mainly focuses on in vitro and animal studies, with a lack of pharmacokinetics, clinical trials, quality control and multi-component synergistic mechanisms. Consequently, it becomes important to embark on additional research to elucidate the pharmacokinetics, bioactive substance basis, and molecular mechanisms of C. officinalis, thereby advancing the aspiration of its comprehensive medicinal utilization and sustainable resource development.