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Review
. 2015 Dec 24:9:68.
doi: 10.1186/s13065-015-0145-9. eCollection 2015.

Citrus fruits as a treasure trove of active natural metabolites that potentially provide benefits for human health

Xinmiao Lv  1 , Siyu Zhao  1 , Zhangchi Ning  1 , Honglian Zeng  1 , Yisong Shu  1 , Ou Tao  1 , Cheng Xiao  2 , Cheng Lu  3 , Yuanyan Liu  1
Affiliations
Review

Citrus fruits as a treasure trove of active natural metabolites that potentially provide benefits for human health

Xinmiao Lv et al. Chem Cent J. .

Abstract

Citrus fruits, which are cultivated worldwide, have been recognized as some of the most high-consumption fruits in terms of energy, nutrients and health supplements. What is more, a number of these fruits have been used as traditional medicinal herbs to cure diseases in several Asian countries. Numerous studies have focused on Citrus secondary metabolites as well as bioactivities and have been intended to develop new chemotherapeutic or complementary medicine in recent decades. Citrus-derived secondary metabolites, including flavonoids, alkaloids, limonoids, coumarins, carotenoids, phenolic acids and essential oils, are of vital importance to human health due to their active properties. These characteristics include anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, as well as cardiovascular protective effects, neuroprotective effects, etc. This review summarizes the global distribution and taxonomy, numerous secondary metabolites and bioactivities of Citrus fruits to provide a reference for further study. Flavonoids as characteristic bioactive metabolites in Citrus fruits are mainly introduced.

Keywords: Bioactivities; Citrus fruits; Flavonoids; Human health; Secondary metabolites.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
a Top six Citrus fruits-producing countries in the world. Citrus species are grown in 140 countries, though production shows geographical concentration in certain areas. China, Brazil, the USA, India, Mexico, and Spain are the world’s top 6 Citrus fruit-producing countries, representing close to two-thirds of global production. China is the first leading country as producers which had produced 32,221,345 tons of Citrus fruit in 2012. Brazil is the second production country of Citrus fruits with 20,258,507 tons in 2012. And the USA. India, Mexico and Spain also play dominant roles in Citrus production which all produced more than 5,000,00 tons in 2012. b Distribution of 14 Citrus-varieties in the major Citrus-producing provinces of China. There are 14 Citrus varieties distributed in 13 provinces in China. (1) C. aurantifolia (Christm.) Swingle is mainly distributed in Yunnan province; (2) C. aurantium L. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang, provinces; (3) C. hongheensis Ye et al. is mainly distributed in Yunnan province; (4) C. hystrix DC. is mainly distributed in Guangxi, Yunnan province; (5) C. ichangensis Swingle is mainly distributed in Gansu, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan provinces; (6) C. junos Sieb. ex Tanaka is mainly distributed in Gansu, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Yunnan provinces; (7) C. limon (L.) Burm. f. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan, Zhejiang provinces; (8) C. limonia Osb. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan provinces; (9) C. macroptera Montrous. is mainly distributed in Hainan, Yunnan provinces; (10) C. maxima (Burm.) Merr. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangsu, Yunnan, Zhejiang provinces; (11) C. medica L. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Yunnan provinces; (12) C. paradisi Macf. is mainly distributed in Guangdong, Sichuan, Zhejiang provinces; (13) C. reticulata Blanco is mainly distributed in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang provinces; (14) C. sinensis (L.) Osb. is mainly distributed in Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang provinces
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