A review of the pharmacological mechanism of corosolic acid.

Authors

Xiaoyin Xu, Zhenduo Zhao, Jiaqi Zhang, Liang Shi, Wenhui Gao, Xi Yang, Xiaoting Zhang, Long Liu, Yanfeng Xu

Published in

Frontiers in pharmacology. Volume 17. Pages 1723882. Epub Mar 18, 2026.

Abstract

Corosolic Acid (CA), a pentacyclic triterpenoid found in plants like Lagerstroemia speciosa, exhibits a wide array of preclinical pharmacological activities, including hypoglycemic, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and cardiovascular protective effects. Often dubbed "plant insulin," its therapeutic potential has garnered significant interest. However, despite numerous in vitro and animal studies elucidating potential mechanisms involving pathways like AMPK, NF-κB, YAP, and various kinases, a critical gap exists between this promising preclinical data and robust clinical validation. This review critically evaluates the existing evidence for CA's major pharmacological actions, focusing on the strength and limitations of current mechanistic understandings, identifying key inconsistencies and controversies in the literature (searched via PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane, Web of Science, etc.). We particularly scrutinize the evidence supporting its roles in metabolic regulation and cancer therapy, highlighting areas where mechanistic insights remain superficial or conflicting. By synthesizing these findings, we aim to identify critical knowledge gaps and propose a structured roadmap with specific, hypothesis-driven future research directions required to rigorously assess CA's translational potential and pave the way for potential clinical applications.

PMID:
41929254
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 14 Sep 2026.

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