Role of magnolol in neuroprotection cellular mechanisms, therapeutic potential and insights into safety and efficacy

The Magnolia genus is traditionally used in traditional medicine to treat neurological and other disorders. Magnolia officinalis Rehder & E.H. Wilson and Magnolia obovata Thunb species have high concentrations of the naturally occurring chemical magnololol in their bark and cones. Dried flower buds of Magnolia biondii Pamp also possess magnolol in large amounts. Magnolol has a prolonged history of usage in conventional Chinese and Japanese medicine for its therapeutic properties. This study aims to evaluate the cellular and molecular mechanisms of magnolol against neurological disorders through a systematic review. The review was performed using the databases Medline, Embase, Science Direct, and Scopus; using the keywords “Magnolol”, “anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, neuroprotection” and “molecular mechanisms”. Additional information was gathered from related textbooks, reviews, and documents. It also participates in neurotransmitter modulation through enhancement of GABAergic transmission and implications for anxiety and epilepsy disorders. Magnolol upregulates Brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression, inhibits amyloid-beta aggregation, and penetrates blood-brain, DNA protection, and calcium homeostasis. Based on the study, magnolol is found to be a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment and prevention of neurological disorders.