Phytochemical Studies on Traditional Herbal Medicines Based on Ethnopharmacological Information Obtained by Field Studies

This document summarizes the results of phytochemical studies on traditional herbal medicines, highlighting the discovery of over 150 new molecules with various biological activities from field studies in China, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, and Bangladesh. The review details the isolation of bioactive compounds such as acylated secoiridoid glucosides with potent free-radical scavenging activity, novel C25 terpenoids, sesterterpenes, diterpenes with cytotoxicity against cancer cell lines, limonoids, triterpenes, and secoiridoid glucoside derivatives. Notably, lanostane-type triterpenes from Inonotus obliquus showed hair growth-promoting effects, some more potent than minoxidil. The document emphasizes the potential of traditional herbal medicines as sources of new drug leads and the importance of ethnopharmacological information in guiding these investigations.