PHYTOCHEMISTRY, PHARMACOLOGY, NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION, AND ETHNOMEDICINAL SIGNIFICANCE OF JATROPHA TANJORENSIS (HOSPITAL TOO FAR) LEAVES: A SCOPING REVIEW

Abstract

Jatropha tanjorensis J.L. Ellis & Saroja (Euphorbiaceae), popularly known as hospital too far in Nigeria, is a leafy vegetable and an ethnomedicinal plant traditionally used for anaemia, diabetes, and malaria. This scoping review maps evidence on the phytochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, nutritional composition, and ethnomedicinal significance of J. tanjorensis leaves. Following the Arksey and O'Malley framework and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, 43 peer-reviewed sources were identified through PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, AJOL, Scopus, and Web of Science. Flavonoids, tannins, saponins, terpenoids, steroids, and cardiac glycosides are consistently reported. GC-MS and LC-MS/MS chemical elucidations identified over 50 compounds, including phytol, benzenetriol derivatives, and flavonoid glycosides. Preclinical evidence documents anti-anaemic, hepatoprotective, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, and antimalarial activities, but antioxidant potency is weak and variable, and reproductive activity findings are directly contradictory, as no human clinical trials were identified. The ethnopharmacological evidence base of J. tanjorensis is heterogeneous and exclusively preclinical. Standardized assay protocols, dose-response studies, and human trials are priorities.