α-Glucosidase inhibitors isolated from medicinal plants

α-Glucosidase inhibitors can be used as a new class of antidiabetic drug. By competitively inhibiting glycosidase activity, these inhibitors help to prevent the fast breakdown of sugars and thereby control the blood sugar level. This study provides a wealth of information about α-glucosidase inhibitors isolated from medicinal plants; this knowledge will be useful in finding more potent antidiabetic candidates from the natural resources for the clinical development of antidiabetic therapeutics. 411 compounds exhibiting α-glucosidase inhibitory activity were summarized and isolated them from medicinal plants. The compound classes isolated include: terpenes (61) from 14 genus, alkaloids (37) from 11 genus, quinines (49) from 4 genus, flavonoids (103) from 24 genus, phenols (37) from 9 genus, phenylpropanoids (73) from 20 genus, sterides (8) from 5 genus, and other types of compounds (43). Compounds with α-glucosidase inhibitory activity are abundant in nature and can be obtained from several sources. They have high α-glucosidase inhibitory potential, and can be clinically developed for treating diabetes mellitus.