Screening for toxic thiophene compounds from crude drugs of the family compositae used in Northern Italy

Abstract

Abstract The presence and distribution of biosynthetically related di‐ and terthiophenes from 25 crude drugs derived from some genera of the family Compositae were investigated by high performance thin layer chromatography ( HPTLC ) densitometry. A significant thiophene content was found in Tagetes patula, Achillea millfolium, A. millefolium var. tanacetifolia , Arnica montana , Artemisia absinthium , A. pontica, A. dracunculus, Centaurea cyanus, Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium, Doronicum pardaliandres, Helianthus annuus and Tanacetum vulgare . The results of this study indicate that commercial crude drugs from the Compositae contain amounts of photoactive thiophenes which are potentially toxic.