Monteverdia ilicifolia as a Herbal Medicine for Treating Gastric Disorders: An Insight into its Quality Control

Background: Monteverdia ilicifolia, popularly known as "espinheira santa", is a plant native to southern Brazil and is widely used in popular therapeutics to treat gastric disturbances. M. ilicifolia is commonly adulterated, intentionally or not, with the plant species Zollernia ilicifolia and Sorocea bonplandii due to the morphological similarity of their leaves. Objective: The aim of this review was to search for changes in the quality control method of M. ilicifolia products to support the correct identification of the botanical species. In addition, the search covered clinical studies, patents, and registered products of herbal medicines based on M. ilicifolia. Methods: This study is an integrative literature review that was developed using databases, indexed articles, and books. The bibliographic searches were performed using Scopus (R), SciFinder (R), Scielo (R), and Science Direct (R). Patent documents and herbal medicines containing M. ilicifolia were searched in the INPI and WIPO databases. Results: The pharmacological activities of M. ilicifolia, the main chemical constituents, and leaf morpho-anatomical characteristics of Monteverdia spp., Z. ilicifolia, and S. bonplandii were summarized. The results also demonstrated herbal medicines based on M. ilicifolia marketed in Brazil, patents in Brazil, and patents in the world market. Conclusion: Quality control for the species M. ilicifolia presents opportunities for improvement. The officially recommended method presents weaknesses concerning species identification. Other chemical markers should be included in the chromatographic analyses. There are seven medicines with valid registrations in Brazil. Furthermore, patents filed in Brazil and at WIPO demonstrate that M. ilicifolia has therapeutic potential in the world market.