ABSTRACT

Bauhinia racemosa Lam. is an important plant in Ayurvedic medicine. The flower buds and their Ayurvedic preparations are well known for anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcer activity. However, still no analytical method has been developed for the identification and quantification of its phytoconstituents. Hence, a study was undertaken with the objective to develop a rapid and precise high performance thin layer chromatography method for the identification and quantification of β-amyrin from Bouhinia racemosa flower buds. Silica gel F254 was used as the stationary phase with a mobile phase consisting of toluene: ethyl acetate (93:07)V/V. The detection of spots was carried out at a visible wavelength by chemical derivatization. The method was validated in terms of linearity, accuracy, precision and specificity. The calibration curve was found to be linear between 2 to 20 μg/spot for β-amyrin. The limit of detection and limit of quantification for the β-amyrin was found to be 0.15 and 0.49 μg/spot, respectively. The percentage of β-amyrin ranges from 0.070 to 0.075 percent. The proposed method can be successfully used to determine the β-amyrin content in polyherbal formulations.