Research Advance on Chemical Constituents and Anti-tumor Effects of Periplaneta americana L.

As a kind of traditional Chinese medicine with a long history, Periplaneta americana L. has a variety of pharmacological activities such as anti-virus, anti-tumor, improving immunity, promoting tissue repair, anti-inflammation, analgesia and protecting liver. In recent years, more and more people pay attention to the insect’s development and utilization. There are a number of quasi-famous drug which main composition based on P. americana extracts have invested to the market (such as "Kangfuxin", "Ganlong", "Xinmailong"). All these show that P. americana have a huge medicinal potential. Moreover, highly reactive chemical substances have huge application prospects in anti-tumor. Based on the above, we review P.americana researches from the chemical composition and anti-tumor effect in recent years, which is aiming at providing theoretical support and help for the drug’s further development and utilization.