CHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF TUBERS OF STEPHANIA WIGHTII (ARN) DUNN BY GC-MS

Stephania wightii (Arn) Dunn known to the Kanikkars as “Koloukone” is one of the medicinally important plants belonging to the family Menispermaceae. Kanikkar tribe’s people of Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu, India, the tubers are used as a medicine in the treatment of cancer. Present study was carried out to analyse the active constituents present in the tuber of said plant. Thirteen compounds were identified in the ethanol extract of S.wightii by Gas Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The major components present in the tuber of S.wightii were (1H)Indolo(2,1-a)isoquinoline,5,6,11,12-tetrahydro-2,3,8,9-tetramethoxy (59.98%),6H Dibenzo (a,g) quinolizine, 5, 8, 13, 13a-tetrahydro-2, 3, 9,10-tetramethoxy-, ( )- (34.86%) and 1, 3-propanediol, 2-(hydroxymethyl) -2-nitro-(2.89%).