article · Pharmacological Research - Modern Chinese Medicine
Carica papaya, commonly known as pawpaw, is a tropical herbaceous plant widely used in traditional medicine across its leaves, stems, roots, fruits, and seeds. It contains high levels of vitamins A and C alongside diverse bioactive compounds. Laboratory and animal studies demonstrate a wide range of pharmacological properties, including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, wound healing, antidiabetic, and neuroprotective effects. Despite these therapeutic possibilities, scientific evidence concerning the individual actions of isolated bioactive compounds remains limited. Most existing knowledge relies on crude extracts rather than purified agents. Further clinical trials and quality control investigations are necessary to determine safe and effective dosing regimens before these properties can be reliably translated into standardised therapeutic solutions for human health conditions.
Carica papaya is an accessible, economically important tropical plant with widespread traditional usage and high nutritional value. Clarifying the biological mechanisms of its compounds helps distinguish verified medical benefits from folklore. Establishing concrete evidence through clinical trials can pave the way for dependable, affordable plant-based therapies and dietary products to address widespread health challenges.
The evidence indicates potential applications in developing nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical products for conditions ranging from diabetes to microbial infections. Pharmaceutical and functional food manufacturers could utilise these properties, but the work remains at an early stage. Commercial translation requires isolating bioactive compounds, conducting rigorous clinical trials, and establishing quality control protocols to define effective and safe doses.
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Carica papaya L. popularly known as pawpaw is an economically important tropical herbaceous plant with numerous biological activities. In traditional medicine, different parts of C. papaya L. (leaves, stem, roots, fruits and seeds) are utilized to treat various diseases. This present review aims to provide up-to-date and comprehensive information on the ethnomedicinal uses, nutritional composition, phytochemical composition, pharmacological activities, clinical trials and toxicity profile of C. papaya. Material search was performed using relevant keywords. Only papers written in the English language and published between January 2000 and March 2023 were collated from the following databases: ScienceDirect, Frontiers, Springer, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI), Wiley and PubMed. Carica papaya possesses high vitamin A and C values and numerous bioactive compounds with known pharmacological activities. In vitro and in vivo studies on C. papaya showed various pharmacological activities such as anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antidiarrheal, wound healing, larvicidal, anxiolytic, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective, anti-diabetic, anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-obesity, antiulcer, antithrombocytopenic, anthelminthic and contraceptive activities. These pharmacological activities may be due to numerous bioactive compounds in different parts of C. papaya. This study revealed that C. papaya has therapeutic potential against various diseases and can be used to develop nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical products. However, there are few or no scientific studies on the pharmacological activities of the isolated bioactive compounds. To fully elucidate the mechanism of action of C. papaya in the treatment of diseases, the bioactive compounds should be studied. Also, studies should be conducted on clinical trials and quality control to establish effective doses of C. papaya or its bioactive compounds for treating various diseases.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.prmcm.2023.100266
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