Solanum torvum Sw.: BioactivePhytochemicals and MolecularMechanisms, Therapeutic Potential, andPharmaceutical Translation

Abstract

Solanum torvum Sw. (Turkey berry) is a medicinal plant widely consumed as a functional food and traditionally used to treat diabetes, inflammatory disorders, microbial infections, liver diseases, anemia, and other chronic ailments. Increasing evidence highlights its rich phytochemical composition and broad pharmacological potential; however, a comprehensive synthesis linking phytochemicals with molecular mechanisms and pharmaceutical translation remains limited. This review critically evaluates the taxonomy, phytochemical diversity, pharmacological activities, toxicological profile, and translational prospects of S. torvum Sw. The plant contains diverse bioactive constituents, including steroidal glycoalkaloids (solasonine, solamargine, solasodine, and torvosides), phenolic acids, flavonoids, terpenoids, saponins, and tannins, which modulate oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, ferroptosis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and signaling pathways such as nuclear factor-
kappa, Nrf2, PI3K/Akt, STAT3, p53, and glutathione peroxidase 4. Preclinical studies support antioxidant, anti- inflammatory, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, nephroprotective, neuroprotective,
antiviral, and anticancer activities. Nevertheless, pharmaceutical development is limited by phytochemical variability, insufficient pharmacokinetic and toxicological data, inadequate compound-specific mechanistic validation, and the lack of robust clinical trials. Future studies should emphasize standardized phytochemical profiling, metabolomics, molecular target validation, pharmacokinetic characterization, and clinical investigations to accelerate the development of evidence-based phytopharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals from S. torvum Sw.