Anticancer Activity of Phytochemicals from Nepalese Plants: A Review of Active Phytochemicals and Screening Methods

Abstract

Medicinal plants have long been sought after as a source of potentially valuable compounds to combat cancer. This review purposes that the phytochemicals found in Nepalese medicinal plants possess significant potential anticancer activity, which calls for methodical evaluation. The study explores the methodologies employed in screening the anticancer activity of medicinal plants found in Nepal. Full-text original research articles were searched on “Google Scholar” and “PubMed” using keywords “Anticancer” and “Medicinal plants”. The obtained plant species in the articles were looked over in the National Herbarium and Plant Laboratories (KATH) Plant Database to confirm their existence in Nepal. A list of 71 plant species showing anticancer activity was obtained. Active phytochemicals and screening methods of the plants reported in the articles were then analysed. The 71 plants contained 84 bioactive compounds, namely 7 alkaloids, 10 polyphenols, 1 saponins, 5 phytosterols, 29 terpenoids, 11 flavonoids, 3 polysaccharides, and 18 other miscellaneous compounds that showed anticancer activities. Likewise, 77.78% of the studies used cell line-based in vitro experiments while 6.94% of the methods employed animal-based in vivo methods, and the remaining 15.28% combined both approaches. In particular, 54.51% of the papers used multiple cell lines, while the remaining used single cell lines. These findings highlight the trend of screening methods, significance and potential of these plants in anticancer properties.