Context: Radix astragali (Fabaceae astragalus propinquus Schischkin) is a Chinese medicinal herb traditionally used for the treatment of several diseases. Calycosin is the major bioactive chemical in the dry root extract of this medical plant.
Objective: This work presents a brief overview of recent reports on the potential effects of calycosin on several diseases and the possible mechanisms of action of this chemical.
Materials and methods: This review gathers information from the scientific literature (before 1 June 2013) that was compiled from various databases, such as Science Direct, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus.
Results: The potential pharmaceutical properties of calycosin in the treatment of tumors, inflammation, stroke, and cardiovascular diseases have gained increasing attention in the recent years. The literature survey showed that calycosin exhibits promising effects for the treatment of several diseases and that these effects may be due to its isoflavonoid and phytoestrogenic properties. The effects of calycosin most likely result from its interaction with the ER receptors on the cell membrane and the modulation of the MAPK signaling pathway.
Conclusion: Calycosin exhibits great potential as a therapeutic drug and may be a successful example of the standardization and modernization of traditional Chinese herbal medicine.
Keywords: Anti-inflammatory; antioxidative; antitumor; cardiovascular; herbal medicine; neuro-protective.