Chromatographic estimation of p-coumaric acid and triacontanol in an Ayurvedic root drug patala (Stereospermum suaveolens Roxb.).

A high-performance thin layer chromatographic method has been established for the identification and standardization of Stereospermum suaveolens extracts using two active biomarkers viz. triacontanol and p-coumaric acid in root samples collected from different geographical locations of India. These marker components have different therapeutic activities: p-coumaric acid is a good antioxidant and also has anti-diabetic properties; triacontanol has anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcer properties. Studies on root as well as stem samples showed characteristic bands of triacontanol and p-coumaric acid at R(f) 0.51 and 0.42, respectively. The amount of triacontanol varied from 0.035-8.472 mg/g in the root samples while the amount of p-coumaric acid was in the range 0.081-0.203 mg/g. The limit of detection for triacontanol was 100 ng/spot whereas that for p-coumaric acid was 10 ng/spot.