Species of Cissampelos (Menispermaceae) are widely used in folk medicine in various cultures, for the treatment of a wide variety of diseases. Several ethnobotanical studies have reported the use of these species, which, among other benefits, instigated further researches on several pharmacological properties and biologically active compounds present in species of the genus. The objective of this review is to compile and update information about the ethnobotanical, phytochemical and biological studies of species of the Cissampelos genus. Among the officially accepted species, C. pareira, C. mucronata and C. sympodialis were the most reported in all aspects of the research. Their immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiallergic and antimicrobial properties have already been established. Evidently, a considerable part of these bioactivities is due to the presence of alkaloids, the main constituents of Cissampelos species. Other natural products such as essential oils, fixed oils, pectins, alcamides, polysaccharides and flavonoids have also been reported. Future investigations on Cissampelos species are necessary, especially regarding pharmacological properties, isolation of substances, mechanism of action and bioavailability in order to provide subsidies for the development of new drugs.

Cissampelos（Menispermaceae）的物种广泛用于各种文化的民间医学中，用于治疗多种疾病。几个民族植物学研究报告了这些物种的使用，除其他益处外，这还促使人们对该属物种中存在的几种药理特性和生物活性化合物进行了进一步的研究。这篇综述的目的是汇编和更新有关Cissampelos属物种的植物学，植物化学和生物学研究的信息。其中正式受理品种，C.藤，C. mucronata和C. sympodialis在研究的各个方面都是报道最多的。它们的免疫调节，抗炎，抗氧化剂，抗过敏和抗菌特性已经确定。显然，这些生物活性的很大一部分归因于生物碱的存在，而生物碱则是双翅目物种的主要成分。还已经报道了其他天然产物，例如精油，不挥发油，果胶，酰胺，多糖和类黄酮。为了对新药的开发提供补贴，有必要对西番莲属物种进行进一步的研究，特别是在药理特性，物质分离，作用机理和生物利用度方面。