Rajinder Singh Chauhan
Jaypee University of Information Technology, India
Title: Quality parameters to regulate herbal raw material of a pharmacologically important medicinal herb Picrorhiza kurroa
Biography
Biography: Rajinder Singh Chauhan
Abstract
Picrorhiza kurroa is an important medicinal herb used in various herbal formulations containing iridoid glycosides picroside-I (P-I) and picroside-II (P-II) as major constituents. P. kurroa has broad range of pharmacological activities like hepato-protective, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, neuroprotective, etc. The proper concentration and ratio of P-I and P-II are important in determining quality and efficacy of P. kurroa-based herbal drug formulations. Majority of the plant material used in the preparation of herbal drugs is collected from the wild, thereby necessitating quality control on raw material. Picrosides contents in rhizomes can be influenced by several factors such as environment (altitude, light intensity, soil conditions, etc.), genetic makeup of different strains of P. kurroa and time of collection of plant material. Different batches of plant material may differ in quality due to these factors. Determination of P-I and P-II contents in different organs of different age groups revealed that mature rhizomes should be harvested while not uprooting the entire underground biomass which not only results in loss of plant material from its natural habitat but also results in variations in the contents of P-I and P-II. We have identified P. kurroa strains which contain desired amounts of P-I and P-II contents and details of their in vitro conservation and usage will be presented. Genetically superior strains coupled with proper harvesting practice can provide authentic raw material for the preparation of herbal formulations of P. kurroa.