Abstract / Summary
Background: Chronic wounds, including diabetic foot ulcers, are sustained by impaired oxygenation, excessive protease and oxidative activity, persistent inflammation, and frequently polymicrobial biofilms. Aurantii Fructus Immaturus ( AFI ) has an ethnopharmacological association with formulas used for suppurative disorders, but its relevance to infected chronic wounds remains uncertain because much of the available evidence concerns isolated compounds rather than AFI preparations. Objective: This review examines the phytochemical breadth of AFI and critically evaluates wound-related evidence for four representative AFI -associated constituents: naringin, naringenin, hesperidin, and limonene. It also identifies the main barriers to extrapolating constituent-level findings to AFI whole extracts. Methods: A structured literature search was conducted, and the identification and selection of records were reported using PRISMA 2020 flow elements. Sixty-two eligible reports were retained for qualitative narrative synthesis. Results: Analytical studies report flavanone glycosides, other flavonoids, polymethoxyflavones, coumarins, limonoid-related constituents, protoalkaloids, organic acids, and volatile terpenes in AFI . Wound-related evidence is concentrated in four representative compounds and is derived largely from purified constituents, other botanical sources, sterile or acute models, and multifunctional formulations. These studies support pharmacological plausibility but do not show that a standardized AFI extract can treat an established polymicrobial wound biofilm. The proposed four-pillar framework is therefore an organizational model for constituent-level evidence rather than a demonstrated mechanism of AFI . Conclusion: Direct evaluation of authenticated and chemically characterized AFI preparations should precede clinical claims or advanced formulation development. Future studies should relate extract composition to activity against established biofilms, host-tissue repair, local exposure, and exposure-matched safety, while using constituent and unloaded-carrier controls where appropriate. Until such evidence is available, the framework remains hypothesis-generating.