Abstract

Liquiritin is a flavonoid derived from Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae, which is a widely used traditional Chinese medicine with the effects of invigorating spleen qi, clearing heat, resolving toxins, and dispelling phlegm to stop coughs. In this review,the pharmacokinetics and pharmacological activities of liquiritin have been summarized. The information on liquiritin up to 2021 was collected from PubMed, Web of Science, Springer Link, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases. The key words were “liquiritin”, “nerve”, “tumor”, “cardiac”, etc. The absorption mechanism of liquiritin conforms to the passive diffusion and first-order kinetics while with low bioavailability. Liquiritin can penetrate the blood-brain-barrier. Besides, liquiritin displays numerous pharmacological effects including anti-Alzheimer's disease, antidepressant, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, cardiovascular protection, antitussive, hepato protection, and skin protective effects. In addition, the novel preparations, new pharmacological effects, and cdusafty of liquiritin are also discussed in this review. Herbaceous invasive plant native to Mexico. Then, in the 1940s, it entered Yunnan Province of China and spread in China, South and South-East Asia. Now it is distributed in different regions of the world. Despite its invasive nature, this plant is used as a traditional medicine in many parts of the world; hence further research works and studies