ReviewFrontiers in pharmacology2026
The latest research progress of ligustilide in the prevention and treatment of central nervous system disorders.
Review in Frontiers in pharmacology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Ligustilide (LIG), a natural phthalide compound mainly isolated from Angelica sinensis and Ligusticum chuanxiong, has attracted increasing attention because of its diverse pharmacological activities, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-apoptotic, and neuroprotective effects. Emerging studies suggest that LIG may have therapeutic relevance in central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Purpose: This review systematically summarizes the pharmacological effects, molecular mechanisms, pharmacokinetic characteristics, metabolism, safety profile, and therapeutic potential of LIG in CNS disorders. Methods: Relevant studies published up to 26 October 2025 were retrieved from PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus using keywords related to ligustilide, central nervous system disorders, pharmacokinetics, metabolism, and toxicity. After removing duplicate records and excluding reviews, editorials, and irrelevant articles, 55 eligible original studies were included in this review. Results: Current evidence indicates that LIG exerts neuroprotective effects in multiple CNS disorders, including ischemic stroke, cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury, vascular dementia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury, and anxiety disorders. Its mechanisms mainly involve modulation of PI3K/Akt, MAPK, NF-κB, Nrf2/ARE, AMPK, and other signaling pathways, leading to reduced oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, and mitochondrial dysfunction. In addition, available studies suggest that LIG can cross the blood-brain barrier and shows relatively favorable safety in preclinical models. Conclusion: LIG demonstrates broad neuroprotective potential in preclinical studies and may represent a promising candidate for CNS disease intervention. However, its poor chemical stability, low oral bioavailability, limited toxicity evaluation, and lack of clinical evidence remain major challenges for translational application. Further studies are required to optimize delivery strategies and validate its efficacy and safety in clinical settings.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.