Page 10 - ITPS-7-3

INNOSC Theranostics

and Pharmacological Sciences

REVIEW ARTICLE
The potential therapeutic value of terpenes

Henry Lowe 1,2,3,4 , Amza Ali 5,6 , Blair Steele , Lorenzo Gordon 7 , and Justin Grant *
1
8
1 Biotech Research and Development Institute, University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica
2 Vilotos Pharmaceuticals Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
3 Flavocure Biotech Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
4 Cancer Research Unit, Institute of Human Virology (IHV), University of Maryland School of
Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
5 Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica
6 Department of Medicine, Kingston Public Hospital, Kingston, Jamaica
7 Department of Internal Medicine, Caribbean School of Medical Sciences, Kingston, Jamaica
8 Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Abstract

Terpenes form part of a huge and diverse class of naturally occurring and volatile
secondary metabolites produced by many plants, fruits, animals, insects, and other
organisms. They are the largest group of naturally occurring metabolites, with over
55,000 types of terpenes produced by plants alone, primarily as essential oils. In
humans, they contain significant biological properties such as antifungal, antiviral,
antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiparasitic, antihyperglycemic, anti-cancer,
*Corresponding author: and analgesic agents. In plants, terpenes also play significant roles in defensive
Justin Grant mechanisms against herbivores and invasive plants, disease resistance, chemical
(justin.grant@utoronto.ca) signaling and communication between plants, protection against photo-oxidation,
Citation: Lowe H, Ali A, Steele plant-environment mediation, thermo-protection, and the attraction of pollinators. In
B, Gordon L, Grant J. The addition, terpenes are responsible for a plant’s scent, taste, flavor, and pigmentation,
potential therapeutic value of
terpenes. INNOSC Theranostics leading to their commercial use as fragrances and food dyes. Terpenes are also used
and Pharmacological Sciences. in the production of synthetic polymers, natural rubbers (polyisoprene), organic
2024;7(3):0332. solvents, varnishes, inks, adhesives, cleaning products, biofuels, pesticides, and food
doi: 10.36922/itps.0332
and drink products. For these reasons, terpenes have significant value in modern
Received: March 15, 2023 medicine, pharmacy, nutraceuticals, cosmetics, and other industries.
Accepted: December 7, 2024
Published Online: June 7, 2024 Keywords: Terpenes; Terpenoids; Metabolites; Cannabis sativa; Essential oils; Sterol;
Squalene; Phytotherapeutics
Copyright: © 2024 This
is an Open-Access article
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution-
Noncommercial License, permitting 1. Introduction
all non-commercial use, distribution,
and reproduction in any medium, 1.1. History and general overview
provided the original work is
properly cited. The term terpene was first coined in 1866 by the German chemist August Kekule to classify
1,2
Publisher’s Note: AccScience camphene and all other hydrocarbons with the empirical formula C H . The term has
10
16
Publishing remains neutral with expanded to include other secondary metabolites such as limonene, myrcene, caryophyllene,
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional linalool, ocimene, and many others, making terpenes the largest class of secondary
affiliations metabolites. Notably, pinene is the most common terpene produced across plant species. 3,4
Volume 7 Issue 3 (2024) 1 doi: 10.36922/itps.0332