Abstract
Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) is a medium sized evergreen tree indigenous to China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Philippines. Litchi and its different parts viz., leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, and pericarp contain significantly high amounts of phenolics and flavonoids compounds which are potential sources of natural antioxidants. Many previously published reports have demonstrated plenty of bioactivities, such as anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, hepato-protective, anti-cancer, cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and immunomodulatory of litchi and its different parts. Litchi fruit is a good source of food nutrition and highly rich in natural anti-oxidants. It very much liked by consumers because of its delicious taste and beneficial health effects. Consumption of litchi and its products owing to their beneficial health promoting effects is rapidly increasing in humans. Litchi as an important plant of traditional medicine and its promising bioactivities has drawn much attention from researchers all over the world. In this chapter phytochemical composition and important bioactive properties of the litchi and different parts have been discussed with given emphasis to the mechanism of action of bioactive principle.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Actis-Goretta L, Romanczyk LJ, Rodriguez CA, Kwik-Uribe C, Keen CL (2008) Cytotoxic effects of digalloyl dimer procyanidins in human cancer cell lines. J. Nutr Biochem 19:797–808
Bagchi D, Sen CK, Ray SD, Das DK, Bagchi M, Preuss HG et al (2003) Molecular mechanisms of cardioprotection by a novel grape seed proanthocyanidin extract. Mutat Res 523:87–97
Bak MJ, Truong VL, Kang HS, Jun M, Jeong WS (2013) Anti-inflammatory effect of procyanidins from wild grape (Vitis amurensis) seeds in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 Cells. Oxidative Med Cell Longev 2013:1–11
Basu S, Haldar N, Bhattacharya S, Biswas S, Biswas M (2012) Hepatoprotective activity of Litchi chinensis leaves against paracetamol-induced liver damage in rats. Am-Eur J Sci Res 7:77–81
Bhat RS, Al-daihan S (2014) Antimicrobial activity of Litchi chinensis and Nephelium lappaceum aqueous seed extracts against some pathogenic bacterial strains. J King Saud Univ Sci 26(1):79–82
Bhoopat L, Srichairatanakool S, Kanjanapothi D, Taesotikul T, Thananchai H, Bhoopat T (2011) Hepatoprotective effects of lychee (Litchi chinensis Sonn.): a combination of anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic activities. J Ethnopharmacol 136(1):55–66
Cabin M (1954) The lychee in Florida. Bulliten No. 546. Floride Fruit Research Institute, USA
Cabral TA, Cardoso L d M, Pinheiro-Sant’Ana HM (2014) Chemical composition, vitamins and minerals of a new cultivar of lychee (Litchi chinensis cv. Tailandes) grown in Brazil. Fruits 69(6):425–434
Castellain RC, Gesser M, Tonini F, Schulte RV, Demessiano KZ, Wolff FR et al (2014) Chemical composition, anti-oxidant and antinociceptive properties of Litchi chinensis leaves. J Pharm Pharmacol 66(12):17961–17967
Chang YY, Yang DJ, Chiu CH, Lin YL, Chen JW, Chen YC (2013) Antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of polyphenol-rich litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.)-flower-water-extract on livers of high-fat-diet fed hamsters. J Funct Foods 5(1):44–52
Chen YC, Lin JT, Liu SC, Lu PS, Yang DJ (2011) Composition of flavonoids and phenolic acids in Lychee (Litchi Chinensis Sonn.) flower extracts and their anti-oxidant capacities estimated with human LDL, erythrocyte, and blood models. J Food Sci 76(5):C724–C728
Costa AGV, Garcia-Diaz DF, Jimenez P, Silva PI (2013) Bioactive compounds and health benefits of exotic tropical red-black berries. J Funct Foods 5:539–549
De Freitas VAP, Glories Y, Bourgeois G, Vitry C (1998) Characterisation of oligomeric and polymeric procyanidins from grape seeds by liquid secondary ion mass spectrometry. Phytochemistry 49:1435–1441
Gontier E, Boussouel N, Terrasse C, Jannoyer M, Menard M, Thomasset B, Bourgaud F (2000) Litchi chinensis fatty acid diversity: occurrence of unusual cyclopropanoic fatty acids. Biochem Soc Trans 28:578–580
González-Centeno MR, Jourdes M, Femenia A, Simal S, RosselloC TPL (2012) Proanthocyanidin composition and anti-oxidant potential of the stem winemaking byproducts from 10 different grape varieties (Vitis vinifera L.). J Agric Food Chem 60:11850–11858
He F, Pan Q-H, Shi Y, Duan C-Q (2008) Biosynthesis and genetic regulation of proanthocyanidins in plants. Molecules 13:2674–2703
Hu ZQ, Huang XM, Chen HB, Wang HC (2010) Anti-oxidant capacity and phenolic compounds in litchi (Litchi chinensis sonn.) pericarp. Acta Hortic 863:567–574
Huang XM, Yuan WQ, Wang C, Li JG, Huang HB, Shi L, Jinhua Y (2004) Linking cracking resistance and fruit desiccation rate to pericarp structure in litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.). J Hortic Sci Biotechnol 79:897–905
Hwang JY, Lin JT, Liu SC, Hu CC, Shyu YS, Yang DJ (2013) Protective role of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) flower extract against cadmium- and lead-induced cytotoxicity and transforming growth factor β1-stimulated expression of smooth muscle α-actin estimated with rat liver cell lines. J Funct Foods 5(2):698–705
Ibrahim SR, Mohamed GA (2015) Litchi chinensis: medicinal uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology. J Ethnopharmacol 174:492–513
Jerez M, Sineiro J, Guitián E, Núñez MJ (2009) Identification of polymeric procyanidins from pine bark by mass spectrometry. Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom 23:4013–4018
Jiang G, Lin S, Wen L, Jiang Y, Zhao M, Chen F, Prasad KN, Duan X, Yang B (2013) Identification of a novel phenolic compound in litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) pericarp and bioactivity evaluation. Food Chem 136(2):563–568
Jiao L, Zhang X, Huang L, Gong H, Cheng B, Sun Y et al (2013) Proanthocyanidins are the major anti-diabetic components of cinnamon water extract. Food Chem Toxicol 56:398–405
Khan IU, Asghar MN, Iqbal S, Bokhari TH, Khan ZUD (2009) Radical scavenging and anti-oxidant potential of aqueous and organic extracts of aerial parts of Litchi chinensis Sonn. Asian J Chem 21(7):5073–5084
Khurshid S, Ahmad I, Anjum MA (2004) Genetic diversity in different morphological characteristics of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.). Int J Agric Biol 6:1062–1065
Kilari EK, Putta S (2016) Biological and phytopharmacological descriptions of Litchi chinensis. Pharmacogn Rev 10(19):60–70
Lemmer D (2002) Report on the Chinese litchi industry. S.A. Litchi Growers’ Association Yearbook 13:1–4.
Li JR, Jiang YM (2007) Litchi flavonoids: isolation, identification and biological activity. Molecules 12:745–758
Li S, Xiao J, Chen L, Hu C, Chen P, Xie B, Sun Z (2012) Identification of A-series oligomeric procyanidins from pericarp of Litchi chinensis by FT-ICR-MS and LC-MS. Food Chem 135(1):31–38
Lin LZ, Sun JB, Chen P, Monagas MJ, Harnly JM (2014) UHPLC-PDA-ESI/HRMSn profiling method to identify and quantify oligomeric proanthocyanidins in plant products. J Agric Food Chem 62:9387–9400
Lin JT, Chang YY, Chen YC, Hu CC, Chang YP, Hsu SH, Yang DJ (2015) Induction of apoptotic death of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells by ethanolic extract from litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) flower. J Funct Foods 19:100–109
Lv Q, Luo F, Zhao X, Liu Y, Hu G, Sun C, Li X, Chen K (2015) Identification of proanthocyanidins from Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) pulp by LC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS and their anti-oxidant activity. PLoS ONE 10(3):1–17
Ma Q, Xie H, Jiang Y, Wei X (2014a) Phenolics and sesquiterpenes from litchi pericarp. J Funct Foods 9:156–161
Ma Q, Xie H, Li S, Zhang R, Zhang M, Wei X (2014b) Flavonoids from the pericarps of Litchi chinensis. J Agric Food Chem 62(5):1073–1078
Man S, Ma J, Wang C, Li Y, Gao W, Lu F (2016) Chemical composition and hypoglycaemic effect of polyphenol extracts from Litchi chinensis seeds. J Funct Foods 22:313–324
Menzel CM (2001) The physiology of growth and cropping in lychee. South African Litchi Growers’ Association Yearbook. 12:9–14
Morton LW, Caccetta RAA, Puddey IB, Croft KD (2000) Chemistry and biological effects of dietary phenolic compounds: relevance to cardiovascular disease. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol 27(3):152–159
Ni H, Li YH, Hao RL, Hu SQ, Li HH (2016) Identification of adenosine deaminase inhibitors from Tofu wastewater and litchi peel and their synergistic anti-cancer and antibacterial activities with cordycepin. Int J Food Sci Technol 51(5):1168–1176
Painuly D, Shukla RK, Porval A, Shukla A (2012) Proximate analysis, nutritive value, total phenolic content and anti-oxidant activity of Litchi chinensis sonn. Nat Prod An Ind J 8(9):361–369
Pareek S (2015). Nutritional and biochemical composition of lychee (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) cultivars. Nutritional composition of fruit cultivars, Elsevier, Preedy V, Simmonds M (eds.), 24 pp
Pesca MS, Dal Piaz F, Sanogo R, Vassallo A, Bruzual de Abreu M, Rapisarda A et al (2013) Bioassay-guided isolation of proanthocyanidins with antiangiogenic activities. J Nat Prod 76:29–35
Prakash D, Upadhyay G, Pushpangadan P, Gupta C (2011) Anti-oxidant and free radical scavenging activities of some fruits. J Complement Integr Med 8(1):196–209
Prakash D, Upadhyay G, Gupta C, Pushpangadan P, Singh KK (2012) Anti-oxidant and free radical scavenging activities of some promising wild edible fruits. Int Food Res J 19:1109–1116
Prasad KN, Yang B, Yang S, Chen Y, Zhao M, Ashraf M et al (2009) Identification of phenolic compounds and appraisal of anti-oxidant and antityrosinase activities from litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) seeds. Food Chem 116:1–7
Prior RL, Gu L (2005) Occurrence and biological significance of proanthocyanidins in the American diet. Phytochemistry 66:2264–2280
Prior RL, Lazarus SA, Cao G, Muccitelli H, Hammerstone JF (2001) Identification of procyanidins and anthocyanins in blueberries and cranberries (Vaccinium Spp.) using high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. J Agric Food Chem 49:1270–1276
Queiroz EDR, Abreu CMPD, Oliveira KDS, Ramos VDO, Fráguas RM (2015) Bioactive phytochemicals and anti-oxidant activity in fresh and dried lychee fractions. Rev Ciênc Agron 46(1):163–169
Ramis ES, Ahmad AF, El-Chaghaby GA (2015) Screening for total anti-oxidant, antibacterial activities, total phenolic and total flavonoid contents of Litchi fruit parts extracted using two different solvents. Afr J Agric Sci Tech 3(12):520–526
Rasmussen SE, Frederiksen H, Struntze Krogholm K, Poulsen L (2005) Dietary proanthocyanidins: occurrence, dietary intake, bioavailability, and protection against cardiovascular disease. Mol Nutr Food Res 49:159–174
Ren S, Xu D, Pan Z, Gao Y, Jiang Z, Gao Q (2011) Two flavanone compounds from litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) seeds, one previously unreported, and appraisal of their α-glucosidase inhibitory activities. Food Chem 127(4):1760–1763
Roux EL, Doco T, Sarni-Manchado P, Lozano Y, Cheynier V (1998) A-type proanthocyanidins from pericarp of Litchi chinensis. Phytochemistry 48:1251–1258
Saikia S, Mahnot NK, Mahanta CL (2016) Phytochemical content and anti-oxidant activities of thirteen fruits of Assam, India. Food Biotechnol 13(1):15–20
Shukla RK, Painuly D, Shukla A, Porval A (2012) Phytochemical investigation and antimicrobial screening of extracts of Litchi chinensis leaves from Dehradun region, India. Environ Conserv J 13(1, 2):7–10
Shukla RK, Painuly D, Porval A, Shukla A (2014) Proximate analysis, nutritional value, phytochemical evaluation, and biological activity of Litchi chinensis Sonn. leaves. J Herbs Spices Med Plants 20(2):196–208
Singh JP, Chandel R, Mishra B, Suneetha V (2013) Evaluation of antimicrobial and anti-oxidant property of lychee’s seed for therapeutic purpose. Int J Pharm Sci Rev Res 19:72–66
Sivakumar D, Terryb L, Korsten L (2010) An overview on litchi fruit quality and alternative postharvest treatments to replace sulfur dioxide fumigation. Food Rev Intl 26:162–188
Su D, Ti H, Zhang R, Zhang M, Wei Z, Deng Y, Guo J (2014) Structural elucidation and cellular anti-oxidant activity evaluation of major anti-oxidant phenolics in lychee pulp. Food Chem 158:385–391
Sun J, Jiang Y, Shi J, Wei X, Xue SJ, Shi J, Yi C (2010) Anti-oxidant activities and contents of polyphenol oxidase substrates from pericarp tissues of litchi fruit. Food Chem 119:753–757
Treutter D (2006) Significance of flavonoids in plant resistance: a review. Environ Chem Lett 4(3):147–157
Wall MM (2006) Ascorbic acid and mineral composition of longan (Dimocarpus longan). Lychee (Litchi chinensis) and rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) cultivars grown in Hawaii. J Food Compos Anal 19:655–663
Wang XJ, Yuan SL, Wang J, Lin P, Liu GJ, Lu YR et al (2006) Anti-cancer activity of litchi fruit pericarp extract against human breast cancer in vitro and in vivo. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 215:168–178
Wang HC, Hu ZQ, Wang Y, Chen HB, Huang XM (2011) Phenolic compounds and the anti-oxidant activities in litchi pericarp: difference among cultivars. Sci Hortic 129:784–789
Waseem K, Ghafoor A, Rahman SU (2002) Effect of fruit orientation on the quality of Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn) under the agro-climatic conditions of Dera Ismail Khan-Pakistan. Int J Agric Biol 4:503–505
Wen L, Wu D, Jiang Y, Prasad KN, Lin S, Jiang G, He J, Zhao M, Luo W, Yang B (2014) Identification of flavonoids in litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) leaf and evaluation of anti-cancer activities. J Funct Foods 6:555–563
Wen L, You L, Yang X, Yang J, Chen F, Jiang Y, Yang B (2015) Identification of phenolics in litchi and evaluation of anti-cancer cell proliferation activity and intracellular anti-oxidant activity. Free Radic Biol Med 84:171–184
Wu YHS, Chiu CH, Yang DJ, Lin YL, Tseng JK, Chen YC (2013) Inhibitory effects of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) flower-water extracts on lipase activity and diet-induced obesity. J Funct Foods 5(2):923–929
Xu X, Xie H, Wang Y, Wei X (2010) A-type proanthocyanidins from lychee seeds and their anti-oxidant and anti-viral activities. J Agric Food Chem 58:11667–11672
Xu X, Xie H, Hao J, Jiang Y, Wei X (2011) Flavonoid glycosides from the seeds of Litchi chinensis. J Agric Food Chem 59(4):1205–1209
Yang D-J, Chang Y-Y, Hsu C-L, Liu C-W, Wang Y, Chen Y-Y (2010) Protective effect of a litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.)-flower-water-extract on cardiovascular health in a high-fat/cholesterol-dietary hamsters. Food Chem 119:1457–1464
Yang DJ, Chang YZ, Chen YC, Liu SC, Hsu CH, Lin JT (2012) Anti-oxidant effect and active components of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) flower. Food Chem Toxicol 50(9):3056–3061
Zhang R, Zeng Q, Deng Y, Zhang M, Wei Z, Zhang Y, Tang X (2013) Phenolic profiles and antioxidant activity of litchi pulp of different cultivars cultivated in Southern China. Food Chem 136(3–4):1169–1176
Zhao MM, Yang B, Wang JS, Li BZ, Jiang YM (2006) Identification of the major flavonoids from pericarp tissues of lychee fruit in relation to their anti-oxidant activities. Food Chem 98:539–544
Zhao MM, Yang B, Wang JS, Liu Y, Yu LM, Jiang YM (2007) Immunomodulatory and anti-cancer activities of flavonoids extracted from litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) pericarp. Int Immunopharmacol 7:162–166
Acknowledgments
Corresponding author of this article is grateful to Dr. Ashok Kumar Chauhan, Founder President, and Atul Chauhan, Chancellor, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India, for providing necessary support and facilities.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Ganjewala, D. (2017). Secondary Metabolite Credentials and Biological Properties of Litchi chinensis . In: Kumar, M., Kumar, V., Prasad, R., Varma, A. (eds) The Lychee Biotechnology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-3644-6_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-3644-6_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-10-3643-9
Online ISBN: 978-981-10-3644-6
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)