A Review of the Ethnobotany, Biological Activity, and Bioactive Compounds of the Plants in the Iphiona Genus

Thirteen species of Iphiona are distributed in Asia and Africa. Though Iphiona plants have a history of usage among local people, the research on their phytochemistry or biological activity has been limited to some studies in recent years. This review aimed to collect the present data about Iphiona species and introduce these plants as interesting candidates for future studies. The published studies up to March 2025 were collected from Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar. The keywords included: Iphiona AND ethnobotany, ethnomedicine, traditional medicine, natural molecule, food, pharmacology, phytochemistry, compounds, biological activity, therapeutic potential, natural medicine, mechanism of action, phytochemicals, secondary metabolites, primary metabolites, alkaloid, flavonoid, terpenoid, polyphenol, monoterpene, sesquiterpene, essential oil, steroid, resin, gum, polysaccharide, oil, protein, mineral, vitamin, fatty acid, supplement, nutrition, meta-analysis, clinical trial, toxicity, and side effects. The evaluated studies revealed the presence of terpenoids, flavonoids, chlorogenic acid derivatives and phyosterols as the most dominant constituents found in the plants. Antioxidant, antimicrobial, antifungal, cytotoxic, hepatoprotective, and α-amylase inhibitory activity have been reported from the plants of Iphiona genus. This review suggests Iphiona as an important, interesting, novel genus, yet to be explored for secondary metabolites and biological activities.