Highly oxygenated diterpenoids in Clerodendranthus spicatus and their bioactivity, A review

Clerodendranthus spicatus (Thunb.) C. Y. Wu possesses a definite curative effect in treating acute and chronic kidney diseases, gout, and urinary system diseases, and has been used as a national medicine for thousands of years. Meanwhile, as its toxic side effects are minimal, C. spicatus has been widely used as a healthy tea-"kidney tea" to improve kidney function. As the specific and main secondary metabolites of C. spicatus, the highly oxygenated diterpenoids exhibit various pharmacological effects such as anti-inflammation, anti-tumor, inhibition of renal fibrosis, treatment of gout, and anti-diabetes. The detailed phytochemistry, plant origin, bioactivity, and structure-activity relationships of them were surveyed here firstly to lay a foundation for the further development of the plant.