Pharmacognostical and physicochemical standardization of ethnopharmacologically important seeds of Lepidium sativum Linn. and Wrightia tinctoria R. Br.

Abstract

Quality control standardizations of the various medicinal plants used in traditional medicine is becoming more important today in view of the commercialization of formulations based on these plants. Lepidium sativum Linn. seeds are used as tonic, carminative in chronic liver enlargement and spleen diseases. The bruised seeds mixed with lime juice are applied to the relief the local inflammation and rheumatic pain. Wrightia tinctoria R. Br. seeds are astringent, acrid, thermogenic, carminative, digestive, stomachic, antidysenteric, constipating, depurative, anthelmintic, aphrodisiac, febrifuge and diuretic. WHO recommends various physicochemical and phytochemical evaluation parameters for quality control of medicinal plants. In view of their medicinal importance and taxonomic confusion, morphology and microscopy, physico-chemical parameters, fluorescence analysis, preliminary phytochemical screening and quantitative estimation were performed to establish the salient diagnostic characters. The morphological, microscopical and physicochemical standards developed in this study will provide referential information for identification of these crude drugs and standardization.