Citrus Flavonoids as Functional Ingredients and Their Role in Traditional Chinese Medicine

Citrus flavonoid concentration in different tissues of citrus from different species around the world were compared together with citrus related traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) ingredients. The citrus species with high flavonoid content like Citrus aurantium and the flavonoid-enriched tissues such as peel and young fruit are frequently utilized in TCM recipes for their gastric protective, antiulcer, cholesterol lowering and anti-cancer effects. Meanwhile they are commonly used as food ingredients in China. Along with the metabolism and absorption, citrus flavonoids are reviewed by their structure-activity relationships and insight is provided about how this compares with the functionalities in TCM treatments. Similar to the interaction with drug absorption, citrus flavonoid-enriched ingredients in TCM recipes usually contribute as “helper” through protecting main active components, enhancing the absorption of the main drugs, and exerting synergistic effects in the overall prescriptions. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________