Plant polyacetylenoids: Phytochemical, analytical and pharmacological updates

In terrestrial medicinal plants, polyacetylenoids have been isolated from almost 110 species belonging to 11 families including Compositae, Apiaceae, Araliaceae, Campanulaceae, Annonaceae, and Meliaceae. They are a class of natural products derived from fatty acids with carbon chain lengths of C8–19, C21, C23–25, C27, C29, and C33, possessing a pleiotropic profile of bioactivities such as anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory activities. Herein, this review aims at summarizing the inventory of polyacetylenoids occurring in terrestrial medicinal plants during the last two decades from 2000 to 2023, the NMR characteristics, and the progress on analytical methods and pharmacological investigation of the well-known plant polyacetylenoids.