Clinacanthus nutans (Burm.f.) Lindau is a well-known traditional herb and vegetable in Southeast Asia countries and Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi and other southern regions of China,with comprehensive pharmacological activities such as anticancer,antioxidation,immuno-regulation,anti-inflammatory,α-glucosidase inhibitory and so on.C. nutans contains various bioactive constituents,among which terpenoids,steroids and glucosides are representative compounds with more and further study,and furofuran lignans are new-found bioactive constituents.In patent application,for the most reported achievements,medical and edible application is always focused by researchers,in the meantime,applications in cosmetics and daily chemicals,animal feed and process technology were also gradually increased.To provide a reference for pharmacodynamic constituents in C. nutans and a scientific basis for further development and application of C. nutans resource,the research progress of chemical constituents at home and abroad and patent application related to C. nutans in China were reviewed in the current paper.