it kills antibiotic-resistant bacteria, has selective anticancer effects on brain cancer cells while leaving normal cells alone, reduces inflammation and pain, lowers blood sugar, and has documented antiviral and anti-malarial activity. it's also the original source of rutin, one of the most widely used flavonoids in supplements today. historically it was used across cultures specifically to stimulate menstruation and regulate reproductive function — that use is scientifically backed but makes it a hard no during pregnancy. the other major caution is phototoxicity — handling fresh rue in sunlight can cause serious skin burns from the furanocoumarins. as a dried herb or tincture at appropriate doses it has a long safety record, but fresh plant contact requires care.

key named compounds: rutin (first isolated from this plant — the name rutin derives from Ruta), quercetin, bergapten, xanthotoxin, psoralen, dictamnine, graveoline, skimmianine, kokusaginin, rutamarin, gravacridondiol, rutacridone epoxide, and the essential oil dominated by 2-undecanone and 2-nonanone.

rue has been shown to induce the removal of an amide group from the antiapoptotic protein Bcl-xL in human brain cancer cells but not in normal B and T lymphocytes, increasing the sensitivity of cancer cells to death while leaving normal cells unaffected.

antimicrobial - volatile oils showed antibacterial activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

alcohol extract was traditionally used in medieval Persian medicine as a male contraceptive drug.
traditional uses across cultures, rue has been used as an emmenagogue (menstrual stimulant) and abortifacient.

skin contact with rue sap followed by sun exposure can cause severe phototoxic burns and blistering.