Pharmacognosy, Phytochemistry & Natural Products

Biography

Biography: KN Sunil Kumar

Abstract

Polyherbal traditional medicines (PTMs) are important category of traditional medicines (TMs) practiced in India. Based on therapeutic applications ancient books of Ayurveda prescribe several polyherbal combinations such as Triphala, Dashamoola etc. The composition of the formula is based on some Ayurvedic principles on properties of the individual ingredients. There are several such formulae mentioned in Ayurvedic Formulary of India (AFI), but very few having monographs on its quality standards published in Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India (API). The ones with monograph in API needs sophistication of the specified standards as the data included are quite insufficient to have exact idea of its chemical composition. Also, in the present context of increasing demand for alternative therapies, standardization of herbal medicines employing more apt fingerprinting techniques are need of the hour towards globalization. In this study, an Ayurvedic PTM namely Jambupallavadi Kvatha Churna (JKC) of AFI used traditionally for chardi (emesis), pravahika (dysentery), meha (diabetes) is considered for deriving fingerprints of its standards employing the usual pharmacopoeial analytical tests in combination with certain chromatographic fingerprints which are not strict pharmacopoeial test for PTMs. Macroscopical and physico-chemical constants (loss on drying at 105º, total ash, acid insoluble ash, ethanol and water soluble extractive) of ingredients (Jambupallava, Amrapallava, Usheera, Vata, Asvattha) were calculated and JKC prepared by mixing equal proportions of the five ingredients were also analyzed for the above physico-chemical constants along with HPTLC and GCMS fingerprinting along with ingrdients. The combination of the results obtained by amalgamation of the currently pharmacopoeial and the non-pharmacopoeial fingerprints would serve in updating the current structure of monograph preparation of PTMs.