Edible Osmanthus fragrans flowers: aroma and functional components, beneficial functions, and applications

Osmanthus fragrans (O. fragrans) has been cultivated in China for over 2,500 years as a traditional fragrant plant. Recently, O. fragrans has drawn increasing attention due to its unique aroma and potential health benefits. In this review, the aroma and functional components of O. fragrans are summarized, and their biosynthetic mechanism is discussed. The beneficial functions and related molecular mechanism of O. fragrans extract are then highlighted. Finally, potential applications of O. fragrans are summarized, and future perspectives are proposed and discussed. According to the current research, O. fragrans extracts and components have great potential to be developed into value-added functional ingredients with preventive effects on certain chronic diseases. However, it is crucial to develop efficient, large-scale, and commercially viable extraction methods to obtain the bioactive components from O. fragrans. Furthermore, more clinical studies are highly needed to explore the beneficial functions of O. fragrans and guide its development into functional food products.