HPTLC ANALYSIS OF THE ROOTS OF TAVERNIERA CUNEIFOLIA (ROTH) ALI

Taverniera cuneifolia (Roth) Ali is commonly called as jethimadh (Licorice). High - Performance Thin - Layer Chromatographic analysis wa s carried out for the regional variation of different regions of India, seasonal variation and species variation. The root powder was extracted with Methanol and further analysis was performed. Quantitat ion of β - sitosterol and lupeol was carried out for T. cuneifolia roots collected from different regions of India like Kutch , Rajkot, Jamnagar (Guj a rat), Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh) , India . The concentrations of β - sitosterol were found to be 1.98 % in Jamnagar, India, 2.64 % in Rajkot , India, 4.45 % in Andhra Pradesh , India and 1.90 % in Jodhpur , India . The concentrations of lupeol were found to be 2.44 % in Jamnagar, India, 2.21 % in Rajkot , India, 2.29 % in Kutch , India and 2.01 % in Jodh pur , India . Seasonal variation of β - sitosterol was found to be highest in monsoon (7.08 %), winter (3.89 %) and summer (2.64 %). Lupeol was found only in summer (1.42 %). Species variation of Taverniera roots showed only presence of β - sitosterol where Taverniera cuneifolia (10.04 %) and Ta verniera abyssinica (6.89 %). Quantitation was carried out on HPTLC silica gel 60 F254 pre - coated plates with the mobile phase Toluene: Methanol: 8: 1 (v/v). A TLC scanner set at 366 nm in fluorescence / reflectance mode was used for quantitation. Keywor ds : Licorice, Taverniera cuneifolia , HPTLC, Regional, Seasonal .