Pharmacological potential of ten indigenous medicinal plants from North Sumatra: A systematic review

Context: Herbal medicine is an integral part of traditional healthcare practices in North Sumatra, Indonesia, particularly among the Batak and Deli Malay communities. Despite their widespread use, many medicinal plants lack systematic pharmacological evaluation. Aims: To review systematically synthesizes evidence on the pharmacological activities and therapeutic potential of ten indigenous medicinal plants traditionally used in North Sumatra: Arenga pinnata, Rhodomyrtus tomentosa, Cananga odorata, Phyllanthus emblica, Gynura procumbens, Premna serratifolia, Styrax sumatranus, Saurauia vulcani, Vitis gracilis, and Zanthoxylum acanthopodium. Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Searches were performed across PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar using MeSH terms and Boolean operators. From 750 retrieved records, 166 studies were included based on predefined eligibility criteria. Only experimental studies reporting bioactive compounds and pharmacological outcomes were considered. Results: The included studies reported diverse bioactivities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anticancer, and immunomodulatory effects. Phyllanthus emblica and Gynura procumbens consistently demonstrated strong antioxidant activity via DPPH and ABTS assays, while Zanthoxylum acanthopodium exhibited potent antimicrobial properties. However, substantial heterogeneity in experimental designs, assay conditions, and compound quantification limited data comparability. Conclusions: The reviewed species show strong potential for therapeutic application and support their ethnomedical use. Further in vivo and clinical investigations are required to validate efficacy, standardize formulations, and support integration into evidence-based medicine.