Estimation of Total Phenols and Flavonoids in Selected Indian Traditional Plants

Traditionally, aerial parts of Abies pindrow Royle (Himalayan Fir; Pinaceae); Abies webbiana Lindl. (Talispatra; Pinaceae); Cephalandra indica Naud. (Ivy Gourd; Cucurbitaceae) and roots of Calotropis gigantea (L.) Dryand (Giant Milkweed; Asclepiadaceae) have been used in the Indian systems of medicine for the treatment of various ailments. But no systematic phytochemical work has ever been carried out on these potential plants. Thus, it was planned to estimate total phenols and flavonoids content in methanol extract, ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) and remaining methanol extract (RME) of selected plants. Properly identified plants were defatted with petroleum ether, and then separately extracted in a Soxhlet apparatus with methanol. The methanol extract of each plant was partitioned by ethyl acetate solvent to obtain EAF of respective plant. The total phenols and flavonoids contents were estimated using standardized procedures. Quantitative determination of total phenols and total flavonoids was done using standard curve of gallic acid (linearity: 20 to 120 mg/ml; r2 = 0.995) and quercetin (linearity: 30 to 180 mg/ml; r2 = 0.997), respectively. EAF of selected plants contained higher content of phenols and flavonoids, where as lowest content was observed in RME of plants. The content of total phenols and flavonoids in selected plants were found to be in order of C. indica > A. webbiana > A. pindrow > C. gigantea. The available literature reveals that polyphenols have been reported to possess varied pharmacological activities. As selected Indian plants contain polyphenols as major class of phytoconstituents, it is suggested that these constituents may be responsible for their medicinal uses.