An updated review of the structural chemistry and biological activity of compounds from Trichilia species

Trichilia P. Brown is one of the largest genera in the Meliaceae family and currently has 102 accepted species. Trichilia species present a wide range of biological activities, such as insecticidal, cytotoxic, and anti-inflammatory, and are notable for their great biotechnological potential. By August 2013, 334 new compounds of several classes had been identified in species of the genus. In order to update the review published by Vieira et al. (2014), this work aims to report the compounds identified in Trichilia species from September 2013 to December 2023. During this period, 305 new compounds were identified and limonoids were the main compounds, accounting for 61%. Although several biological activities were presented, the cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory activities were particularly noteworthy, as they were presented by more than half of the compounds tested. According to the data published in the previous review, together with those obtained in the current research, by 2023, a total of 639 compounds had been identified in Trichilia species, with limonoids being the most predominant. In the future, research focusing on the insecticidal activities of the compounds identified in Trichilia against agricultural pests and insect vectors could be of great importance, as well as in vivo tests and toxicological investigations to assess the potential for its use as a medicine.