title: Traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of the genus Acer (maple): A review.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The genus Acer (Aceraceae), commonly known as maple, comprises approximately 129 species that primarily grow in the northern hemisphere, especially in the temperate regions of East Asia, eastern North America, and Europe. These plants have been traditionally used to treat a wide range of diseases in East Asia and North America. Moreover, clinical studies have shown that medicinal plants belonging to Acer are highly effective in the treatment of rheumatism, bruises, hepatic disorders, eye disease, and pain, and in detoxification. This review provides a systematic and constructive overview of the traditional uses, chemical constituents, and pharmacological activities of plants of the genus Acer.
  
  
  METHODS
  This review is based on a literature study of scientific journals and books from libraries and electronic sources such as SciFinder, ScienceDirect, Springer, PubMed, CNKI, Google Scholar, Baidu Scholar, and Web of Science. The literature in this review related to chemical constituents and pharmacological activities dates from 1922 to the end of October 2015. Furthermore, ethnopharmacological information on this genus was obtained from libraries and herbaria in China and USA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In traditional medicine, 40 species, 11 subspecies, and one varieta of the genus Acer are known to exhibit a broad spectrum of biological activities. To date, 331 compounds have been identified from 34 species of the genus Acer, including flavonoids, tannins, phenylpropanoids, diarylheptanoids, terpenoids, benzoic acid derivatives, and several other types of compounds, such as phenylethanoid glycosides and alkaloids. Preliminary pharmacological studies have shown that the extracts and compounds isolated from this genus exhibit a broad spectrum of biological activities such as antioxidant, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, and antiobesity activities, as well as promoting osteoblast differentiation. To date, reports on the toxicity of Acer species to humans are very limited, and the major safety concern of these plants is in the veterinary field.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Based on our systematic review, Acer species can be used to treat rheumatism, hepatic disorders, eye disease, pain, etc. effectively. Some indications from ethnomedicine have been validated by pharmacological activities, such as the anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective activities of the species. The available literature showed that most of the activities of these species can be attributed to flavonoids and tannins. To ensure the safety and efficacy in clinical practice in the future, studies identifying active molecules and clarifying their pharmacological mechanisms as well as toxicity are needed.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Wu
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Bi
authors.affiliation: Tennessee Center for Botanical Medicine Research and the Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN 37132, USA.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: cnhe@implad.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Chunnian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Haibo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Baotou Medical College, Baotou 014060, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Chunhong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: xiaopg@public.bta.net.cn.
authors.forename: Peigen
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Xiao
mesh_terms: D031002:Acer / Q000737:chemistry*; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019448:Ethnobotany; D020834:Ethnopharmacology; D006801:Humans; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D064209:Phytochemicals / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D018570:Risk Assessment; D018675:Toxicity Tests
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D064209:Phytochemicals; D010936:Plant Extracts
keywords: Acer; Aceraceae; Maple; Pharmacology; Phytochemistry; Traditional uses