Pharmacognostic study of the root of Justicia gendarussa Burm

Pharmacognostic study of the root of Justicia gendarussa Burm / Asian Journal of Traditional
Medicines, 2011, 6 (2)
pharmacognostic and physico-chemical studies is
still lacking. Accordingly, the present investigation
of J. gendarussa was carried out to establish
botanical, chemical, and analytical tools which
would help in crude drug identification as well as in
checking for any adulteration. In addition, this study
will greatly help in quality assurance investigations
of the finished products involving herbal drugs.
2. Materials and methods
The roots of Justicia gendarussa were collected
from Anand farm and nursery Gandhinagar, Gujarat,
India. The plant was authenticated by a taxonomist
at the Department of Botany, School of Science,
Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India. A voucher specimen
is kept at the Department of Pharmacognosy K.B.
Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research,
Gandhinagar, Gujarat. A fresh sample of the roots
was subjected to morphological and microscopical
studies and after the dried roots were powdered and
passed through a 60 mesh sieve and then stored
in an airtight container for further use. Macerates
were prepared by the Schulz maceration method [7].
Photomicrographs were obtained for histological
observation (Labomed). A powder of the dried roots
was used for chemical analysis. Physicochemical
studies [9, 10] of the powdered drug, such as
determination of the ash value, extractive value, loss
on drying and crude fiber content were performed
according to the WHO guidelines. An extract of
the dried root powder of Justicia gendarussa was
prepared by using a soxhlet extractor involving
successive extractions with increasingly polar
solvents, petroleum ether, methanol and water. The
dried extracts were then stored in airtight containers
until required. These three extracts were analyzed for
the presence of alkaloids [11], flavanoids [12, 13],
saponins [14, 15], carbohydrates [16], steroids [17],
triterpenoids [18], carotenoids, amino acids, tannins
[19, 20], phenolics [21, 22], coumarins [23, 24] and
anthraquinones [25] using standard procedures.
2.1. Quantitative Standards
2.1.1. Determination of phenolics [26, 27]
To 1 ml of the methanolic extract of the roots
of J. gendarussa, 10 ml distilled water and 1.5 ml
diluted (1:2) Folin ciocalteu reagent were added and
the mixture was allowed to stand for 5 min. After
adding 4 ml 20 % w/v Na 2 CO 3 solution, the final
volume was adjusted to 25 ml using distilled water.
The absorbance was measured at 765 nm at intervals
of 30 min up to 2 h using distilled water as a blank.
The total phenol content was measured using
following formula:
C = (A×282.6) - 8.451
where, A= Absorbance.
2.1.2. Determination of saponins [28]
According to the results obtained from the
foaming test, the foaming index of the roots of J.
gendarussa was high. Further studies were carried
out to estimate the total saponin content. The
decoction was poured into 10 stoppered test-tubes
(height 16 cm, diameter 16 mm) in successive
portions of 1 ml, 2 ml, 3ml. up to 10 ml, and the
volume of liquid in each tube was made up with
water to 10 ml. The tubes were stoppered and shaken
for 15 sec, at two shakes per second. After standing
for 15 min, the height of the foam was measured and
the froth index was calculated.
2.1.3. Development of a preliminary HPTLC method
for the analysis of different extracts of the roots of
Justicia gendarussa
An accurate and sensitive preliminary HPTLC
method was developed for the analysis of different
extracts of the roots of J. gendarussa with the help
of a microliter syringe. Standard or sample solutions
of appropriate volume were applied to TLC plate
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