Biological Potential and Therapeutic Effectiveness of Hinokiflavone in Medicine: The Effective Components of Herbal Medicines for Treatment of Cancers and Associated Complications

Background: Plants have been providing us medicines and food material for centuries. Traditional system of medicine, including Ayurveda, and Traditional Chinese medicines have been playing important role in health sectors for the treatment of human disorders since very early age. Plant secondary metabolites, including flavonoids, coumarins, saponins, and tannins have significant therapeutic potential in medicine. Biflavonoids are dimers of flavonoids, linked by a C–O–C or C–C bond. Hinokiflavone is an important class of biflavonoids found to be present in Toxicodendron succedaneum, Isophysis tasmanica, Juniperus rigida, Juniperus phoenicea, Platycladi cacumen, Rhus succedanea, Selaginella tamariscina, Platycladus orientalis, Selaginella bryopteris, and Metasequoia glyptostroboides. Methods: Biological potential of hinokiflavone in medicine have been analyzed in the present work through scientific data analysis of various literature work. Scientific database, including Google, Scopus, Science Direct, and PubMed were searched to collect all the scientific information of the present work using terms flavonoid, biflavonoid, herbal medicine, and hinokiflavone. Pharmacological activities of hinokiflavone were analyzed in the present work in very detailed manner. Analytical data of hinokiflavone were collected and analyzed in present work in order to know the biological source of hinokiflavone. Results: Present work signified the biological importance of hinokiflavone against various types of cancerous disorders, including breast cancer, colorectal cancer, esophageal squamous cancer, adenocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, myeloid leukemia, and melanoma. Further, its antiinflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-viral, and anti-oxidant potential were also discussed in the present work. Moreover, its biological potential against COVID-19 and hair loss, and procoagulant activity were also summarized in this paper. Analytical data on hinokiflavone signified the importance of various analytical techniques in the extraction, separation, and identification of hinokiflavone with their pharmacokinetic parameters. Conclusion: Present work signified the biological importance and therapeutic potential of hinokiflavone in medicine.