The genus Micromeria Benth.: An overview on ethnobotany, chemotaxonomy and phytochemistry

The genus Micromeria Benth. from the family Lamiaceae mainly comprises herbaceous plants having several remarkable ethnobotanical, biological and phytochemical applications. This review critically appraises all the information available in the literature, e.g., Scopus, Institute for Scientific Information-Web of Science (ISI-WOS) as well as Medline on various species of this genus covering aspects of biological activity, ethnobotanical, chemical taxonomy and phytochemistry. The phytochemical composition of both essential oils and non-volatile extracts is reported. Their chemotaxonomic implications and ethnomedicinal impacts are also discussed. The pharmacological properties of crude extracts and isolated phytochemicals from Mircomeria spp. observed in several bioactivity tests are also critically reviewed. From phytochemical point of view, the characterization of the organic extracts of different Mircomeria spp. has led to the identification of some valuable natural compounds. Furthermore, the chemical profiles of most of the species are dominated by oxygenated monoterpenes. A wide spectrum of promising biological properties have been attributed to Mircomeria species including antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, anticholinesterase, tyrosinase inhibition and antinociceptive activities. Moreover, it has been shown that rosmarinic acid serves as a marker compound in several entities of this genus.