A REVIEW OF THE PHARMACOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF URSOLIC ACID

Abstract

Plants are known to produce a variety of bioactive metabolites which are being used to cure various life threatening and chronic diseases. The molecular mechanism of action of such bioactive molecules may open up new avenues for the scientific community to develop or improve novel therapeutic approaches to tackle dreadful diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders etc. Ursolic acid (UA) is one among the categories of such plant-based therapeutic metabolites having multiple intracellular and extracellular targets that play role in apoptosis, metastasis, angiogenesis and inflammatory processes. Ursolic acid (UA) is a pentacyclic triterpenoid widely found in herbs, leaves, flowers and fruits. Moreover, the synthetic derivatives of UA have also been seen to be involved in a range of pharmacological applications, the great interest in this bioactive compound is related to the beneficial effects in human health due to antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, immunomodulatory, anti-tumor, chemopreventive, cardioprotective, antihyperlipidemic and hypoglycemic activities, and others. UA may augment the resistance of the skin barrier to irritants, prevent dry skin and could be suitable to develop antiaging products. Evidences suggest that UA could be used as a potential candidate to develop a comprehensive competent strategy towards the treatment and prevention of health disorders. The review article herein describes the possible therapeutic effects of UA along with putative mechanism of action.