The medicinal and nutritional role of underutilized citrus fruit Citrus hystrix (Kaffir lime): a review

Abstract

Citrus hystrix, commonly known as kaffir lime and medicinal lime as mentioned in ancient literature and belonging to Rutaceae family and it is native to everywhere within India and South East Asia. The fruits are green when raw and greenish yellow when fully ripe. They are used
to prepare juice, pickles and as acidulant in curries. In the traditional Indian system of medicine the Ayurveda and various folk systems of
medicine, the fruit peel and leaves are used to treat various inflammatory ailments. Chemical studies have shown that fruit contains various phytoconstituents like glycerolglycolipids, tannins, tocopherols, furanocoumarins and flavonoids and alkaloids. Pre clinical studies have shown that some of its phytochemicals possess antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, chemopreventive, antioxidant, anticholinesterase, cardio and hepatoprotective effects. The present paper deals with review of phytoconstituents and pharmacological action of underutilized C. hystrix fruit.

Full text

Abirami et al. / Drug Invention Today 2014,6(1),1-5
Drug Invention Today Vol.6.Issue.1.January 2014 1-5
Review Article Available online through
www.ditonline.info
ABSTRACT
Citrus hystrix, commonly known as kaffir lime and medicinal lime as mentioned in ancient literature and belonging to Rutaceae family and it
is native to everywhere within India and South East Asia. The fruits are green when raw and greenish yellow when fully ripe. They are used
to prepare juice, pickles and as acidulant in curries. In the traditional Indian system of medicine the Ayurveda and various folk systems of
medicine, the fruit peel and leaves are used to treat various inflammatory ailments. Chemical studies have shown that fruit contains various
phytoconstituents like glycerolglycolipids, tannins, tocopherols, furanocoumarins and flavonoids and alkaloids. Preclinical studies have
shown that some of its phytochemicals possess antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, chemopreventive, antioxidant, anticholinesterase,
cardio and hepatoprotective effects. The present paper deals with review of phytoconstituents and pharmacological action of underutilized
C. hystrix fruit.
Key words: Citrus hystrix, underutilized fruits, phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, health benefits.
*Corresponding author.
Perumal Siddhuraju
Bioresource Technology Lab,
School of Life Sciences,
Department of Environmental Sciences,
Bharathiar University, Coimbatore – 641 046,
Tamil Nadu, India.
The Medicinal And Nutritional Role of Underutilized Citrus
Fruit- Citrus hystrix (Kaffir Lime): A Review
Arumugam Abirami, Gunasekaran Nagarani and Perumal Siddhuraju*
Bioresource Technology Lab, School of Life Sciences, Department of Environmental Sciences,
Bharathiar University, Coimbatore – 641 046, Tamil Nadu, India.
Received on: 20-11-2013; Revised on: 10-12- 2013; Accepted on:19-12-2013
ISSN: 0975-7619
1. INTRODUCTION
Indigenous plant species are important sources of nutrition and tradi-
tional medicine to the local people in the rural areas, where the avail-
ability of the food is less or is unaffordable to the poor people.1 Citrus
hystrix DC belonging to the family Rutaceae is an underutilized tropi-
cal fruit, is a small and bushy tree, about 3-5 m tall, which grows all
over India and South East regions of Asia, Southern China, Malaysia
and Thailand.2 C. hystrix belonging to the family Rutaceae is an
underutilized tropical fruit of Thailand. It is an underexploited tree
and is known as wild lime, medicinal lime and kaffir lime in English.
They were bumpy, green, maturing to yellow skinned citrus fruit with
a highly acidic flavour. A very thorny bush with aromatic leaves. The
fruits are subglobose to oblate-globose shape, with a distinct nipple
on the stem end. It has thick rind, knobby and wrinkled nature.3 Kaffir
lime is used as an herbal medicine to cure many diseases such as
heart disease, dizziness and indigestion and also as physical nourish-
ment.4 It has folkloric reputation to be used in flu, fever, hypertension,
abdominal pains and diarrhea on infants.5 The fruit skin was tradition-
ally used among the Malaysian folks for washing their hairs and other
parts of the body and also the fruit juice is rubbed onto the skin to
soften or mixed with bath water to control body odor.6 Extracts from
the skin as well as juice are used as an insecticide for washing the
head and treating the feet to kill land leeches. The regular use of
rubbing fresh leaves on the teeth and gum could aid in dental health.
The oil from leaves and fruits are used as perfumery and medicinal
preparation. Alcoholic and chloroform extracts of fruit peel possesses
post-coital anti-fertility activity.7 Crude acetone extract of root exhib-
its the activity against HIV-1 protease.8 The fruits are used in tradi-
tional cuisines and remedies such as headaches and sore throats by
Thai people.9 The methanolic extract of leaves is known to inhibit the
herpes virus10 and also used as mosquito repellent.11 The fruits are
used as pickle as well as in cooking. The leaves are strongly aromatic
and one or two leaves can be torn, chopped or shredded and used in
soups and curries preparation and also added in butter milk during
the summer time in order to delay or stop the lipid peroxidation due to
the presence of associated bioactive compounds i.e. polyphenols
and enhance the digestion system of stomach.
2. Phytochemistry
The leaves contain two glyceroglycolipids (1, 2-di-O-α-linolenoyl-3-
O-ß-galactopyranosyl-sn-glycerol (DLGG) and 1-O-α-linolenoyl-2-O-

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Abirami et al. / Drug Invention Today 2014,6(1),1-5
1-5
palmitoyl-3-O-ß-galactopyranosyl-sn-glycerol (LPGG) 12 and a-toco-
pherol.13 Leaves contain the volatile compounds such as citronellal,
α-pinene, ß-pinene, sabinene, myrcene, trans-ocimene, γ-terpinene,
?-cymene, terpinolene, copaene, camphene, limonene, copene, lina-
lool, ß-cubebene, isopulegol, caryophyllene, citronellyl acetate,
citronellyl propionate citronellol, linalool, nerolidol, isopulegol,
caryophyllene and δ-cadinene.14,15,16 Forty one volatile constituents
were identified from the leaf oil such as 2, 6-dimethyl-5heptenal and
2,6-dimetyl-5-heptenol and three new compounds were identified (ρ-
menthan-8-ol (dihydro-a-terpineol), guaiol, and 4-ρ-menthene).6 Fifty
four free and thirty-nine glycosidically bound volatile compounds
were isolated from kaffir lime leaves.15,17,18 Two flavanone glycoside
namely hesperidine and neohesperidine and one furanocoumarin
namely oxypeucedanin hydrate were isolated from leaves19 and also
contains eriocitrin, neoeriocitrin, narirutin, naringin, didymin and
myricetin.20,21 Phenolic acids (vanillic acid, ρ-coumaric acid, sinapic
acid, m-coumaric acid, benzoic acid, cinnamic acid) were identified
from the ethanolic extract of leaves.22
Polar phenolic compounds such as aglycones and glycosides of fla-
vonoids, didymin, eriocitrin. neohesperidin and neoeriocitrin were
identified in Peel of kaffir lime.23 Peel contains flavanones (naringin
and hesperidin), polymethoxyflavones (sinensetin, nobiletin and
tangeretin).24,25 Peel contains essential oils such as ß-pinene, sabinene,
terpinen-4-ol, pinene, terpineol, 1, 8-cineole, citronellal, limonene, ρ-
menthan-8-ol (dihydro-a-terpineol), guaiol, and 4-ρ-menthene.6,26,27
Four new citrunosides (1-4) was isolated from peel, compound 1 is a
1-O-isopropyl-6-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl esters of 5'', 9''-dimethyl-2'',
8'' -decadienoic acid. Compound 2-4 possess a 1-O-isopropryl- ß-D-
glucopyranosyl and a dihydroxyprenyl furanocoumarin moiety con-
jugated to the 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid as diesters.28 Peel is
a good source of dietary fiber, containing total dietary fiber (82 g/
100g), insoluble dietary fiber (54 g/100g) and soluble dietary fiber (28
g/100g).25
Limonoid namely limonin was isolated from root.19 Two coumarins
(hystrixarin (1) and hopeyhopin (2), a benzenoid derivatives
(hystroxene-I (3) and quinolinone alkaloid (hystrolinone (4) were iso-
lated from the crude acetone extract of root.8
3. PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTION
3.1. Antimicrobial activity
It is a well known fact that essential oils from Citrus spp., possessed
antimicrobial effect such as antibacterial and antifungal activity.29,30
So that the essential from citrus has used to improve the shelf life and
safety of minimally processed fruits, skim milk and low-fat milk.31 The
essential oil and crude ethanolic extract of Kaffir lime peel showed
greater antibacterial action against twenty sero types of Salmonella
and five species of enterobacteria than the crude ethanolic extract of
kaffir lime leaves.32 Volatile oil from the Kaffir lime peel exhibit the
antimicrobial activity against B. subtilis, E. coli, S. typhimurium and
S. aureus.33
The crude extract of Kaffir lime oil from peel could inhibit the growth
of Candida albicans which causing dandruff on the scalp. The Kaffir
aromatic oil at 1% (v/v) could inhibit the growth of C. albicans and
having more effective than positive control ketoconasole.34 Essential
oil (ß- citronellol, linalool and citronellol) from the leaf of Kaffir lime
exhibited insecticidal properties against Spodoptera litura at 26.748
µL/g.16 Makrut leaf oil (citronellal) and makrut oil (limonene, terpinene
and a- terpineol) exhibited antibacterial properties by disc diffusion
method against Moraxella catarrhalis, Haemophilus influenza, S.
pneumonia, S. aureus and Acinetobacter baumannii.35
Supercritical fluid extract of C. hystrix (stem and bark) have the pos-
sibility to be applied as a constituent of cosmetic products and medi-
cines because they showed highest antibacterial activity against on
Basillus subtilis, moderate activity on B. cereus and Staphylococcus
epidermidis, and weak activity against S. aureus and
Propionibacterum acnes which are known to cause various type of
skin infections.36 At 5 and 10% concentration the Kaffir lime extract
could inhibit the fungal spore germination of Colletotrichum
gloeosporioides and Fusarium sp.,37 Isolated coumarins (hystrixarin
and hopeyhopin), benzenoid derivatives (hystroxene) and
quinolinone alkaloid (hystrolinone) from the acetone extract of Kaffir
lime root were found to exhibit antibacterial activity against
Acinetobacter baumannii and E. coli with MIC values <3.125 and
3.125 µg/ml.8
Kaffir lime peel has the potential to act as a natural antimicrobial
agent and showed activity against B. cereus, Salmonella typhi and
Staphylococcus aureus.38 The ethyl acetate extract from kaffir lime
peel exhibited broad spectrum of inhibitory activity against Gram-
positive bacteria, yeast and molds including Staphylococcus aureus,
Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, Saccharomyces cerevisiae
var. sake and Aspergillus fumigatus TISTR 3180. The major compo-
nent such as limonene, citronellal sabinene and ß-pinene may con-
tribute to the antimicrobial activity.26
Alcoholic extract of Kaffir lime peel has been exhibited the antibacte-
rial activity against S. aureus, B. cereus, Vibrio cholera Ogawa and V.
parahemolyticus.39,40 The methanolic peel extract of C. hystrix fruit
possess antibacterial activity on human pathogenic bacteria such as
S. aureus, S. typhi, E. coli, K. pneumonia and Proteus vulgaris. The
maximum inhibition zone was recorded against S. aureus and S. typhi
an inhibition zone of 19 mm and 22 mm respectively.41
Anti-inflammatory activity
Essential oil from C. hystrix reported to exhibit anti-inflammatory ac-
tivity against P. acne using 5-lipoxigenase inhibition assay. The ma-
jor component such as d-limonene in the essential oil could contrib-
ute to the inhibitory activity and observed IC50 value of 0.05 µl/ml
were compared to that of positive control nordihydroguaretic acid.
D-limonene could inhibit the P. acne and reduce inflammation as well
as reduce the post-acne scar formation and help to relieve acne blem-
ishes.42
Methanolic extract of leaves tested to measure the anti-inflammatory
activity by 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate (TPA) induces

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Drug Invention Today Vol.6.Issue.1.January 2014 1-5
edema formation on ICR mouse ears. Two glycerolipids (1,2-di-O-α-
linolenoyl-3-O-ß-galactopyranosyl-sn-glycerol (DLGG), 1-O- α-
linllenoyl-2-O-palmitoyl-3-O- ß-galactopyranosyl- sn-glycerol (LPGG)
exhibited higher activity ( 32 and 43%) than positive control in-
domethacin (19%).12
3.2. Anti tumor activity
Methonolic extract of leaves were evaluated for hepatocarcinogenic
activity against 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo (4,5-f) quinoxaline. C.
hystrix exerts strong promotive potential on 2-amino-3,8-
dimethylimidazo (4,5-f) quinoxaline induced hepatocarcinogenesis in
the rat model. The presence of some active chemicals in the leaves of
C. hystrix could significantly enhance the hepatocarcinogenic ef-
fect.43
Two glycerolipids (1,2-di-O-a-linolenoyl-3-O-ß-galactopyranosyl-sn-
glycerol (DLGG), 1-O- a-linllenoyl-2-O-palmitoyl-3-O- ß-
galactopyranosyl- sn-glycerol (LPGG)) from methanolic extract of
leaves of C. hystrix were evaluated to inhibit the tumor promoting
activity of 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate in mouse skin with
dimethylbenz (a) anthracene (DMBA) and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol
13- acetate. Both lipids were potent inhibitors of tumor promoter-
induced Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) activation.12
3.3. Anticholinesterase activity
The isolated Citrusosides A-D and furanocoumarins compounds from
the hexane and methanolic extract of peel reported to possess
butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory properties and observed IC50 of 11.2
, 15.4 and 23 µM was comparable to that of the standard Galanthamine
(3.2 µM). It is confirmed that the presence of dioxygenated geranyl
chain in the compounds to be vital for the anticholinesterase activ-
ity.28
Two flavanone glycosides (hesperidin and neohesperidin) and
furanocoumarin (oxypeucedanin hydrate) from butanolic and
dichloromethane extract of leaves and limonoid (limonin) from the
ethyl acetate extract of roots investigated to possess low to medium
anticholinesterase inhibitory activity toward acetylcholinesterase and
butyrylcholinesterase. The highest activity were reported to the com-
pounds neohesperidine and oxypeucedanin with the IC50 values of
0.16 mM toward AChE 0.26 mM BChE was compared to that of the
positive control serine.19
3.4. Antioxidant activity
Methanolic extract of leaves were evaluated for antioxidant potential.
It exerts its oxidative stress by scavenging hydroxyl radicals and
inhibiting lipid peroxidation that causes oxidative damage to liver
cancer cell line HepG2 cells due to the presence of flavonol (myricetin)
in the leaves (68.4 mg/100 g).21 Ethanolic extract of leaves were screened
for the ferric reducing antioxidant power, ß- carotene bleaching and
oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay. The study reported that
leaves extracts exhibited FRAP value (781 mM TE/g), ß- carotene
bleaching activity (35.67%) and ORAC assay (10.51 mmol TE/g).44
Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction of leaves was reported for the
higher total phenolic content (128.9 mg GAE/g extract) than the sol-
vent extraction and higher DPPH radical scavenging activity with the
IC50 of 0.065-0.300 mg/ml.22 Juice of Kaffir lime was reported to pos-
sessed high phenolic (490.47 mg GAE/ 100 ml of juice) and flavonoid,
(22.25 mg hesperidine equivalent/100 ml) content and exhibited good
antioxidant activity by DPPH and FRAPS methods. Juice showed the
scavenging activity against DPPH radicals to have IC50 values of 35
mg/100 ml and FRAP value of 89.0 µmol Fe2+ equivalent/100 mL of
juice.45
3.5. Inhibitors of Nitric oxide generation
Coumarins (bergamottin, oxypeucedanin and 5-[(6’, 7;-dihydroxy-3’,
7’-dimethyl-2-octenyl) oxy-]-psoralen) from the Methanolic extract of
fruits were exhibited as inhibitors of lipopolysaccharide and inter-
feron induced nitric oxide generation in RAW 264.7 cells. Among the
three coumarins the inhibitory activity of bergamottin was higher
than the others and it showed (IC50 value of 14 µM) which was com-
parable to that of a synthetic L-arginine analogue inhibitor of iNOS
(N-(iminoethyl)-L-ornithine) (IC50 value of 7.9 µM). The bergamottin
has the potential to inhibits the LPS/IFN-γ-triggered iNOS expres-
sion pathways and /or iNOS enzyme activity.46
CONCLUSIONS
Citrus, popularly known as food article is the unique source of vari-
ous types of compounds having diverse structure. C. hystrix is a
versatile, nutritious fruit with a great variety of uses. Here, an attempt
was made to address phytochemistry and pharmacology of the
underutilized fruit C. hystrix. It is quite evident from this review that
C. hystrix an important medicinal herb which are being utilized in the
field of Ayurveda, Siddha and other medical systems. C. hystrix con-
tains a number of phytoconstituents, which are the key factors in the
nutritional and medicinal value of this plant. Almost all parts of this
plant such as leaf, fruit, seed and root are used to cure a variety of
diseases. Crude extracts and phytochemicals isolated from various
parts of C. hystrix, as reviewed here have been found to have many
pharmacological activities such as antibacterial, antifungal, antioxi-
dant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer and antioxidant activity. The
underutilized fruit of C. hystrix is a very important part of biodiversity
and it’s sustainably use for future generations. Quite a significant
amount of work has been done on the biological activity and possible
application of these compounds and hence extensive investigation
on its pharmacology and clinical trials is needed to exploit their thera-
peutic utility to cure various diseases. The nutraceuticals perspec-
tives of dietary fiber prepared from peel and pulp of C. hystrix fruit
may be further exploited through in vivo studies for the wider utiliza-
tion.
Conflicts of Interest
All authors have none to declare.
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