Preliminary Phytochemical Screening and HPTLC Fingerprinting of Leaf Extracts of Pisonea Aculeata

Objective: To establish the fingerprint profile of Pisonea aculeata using high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) technique. Methods: Preliminary phytochemical screening was done and HPTLC studies were carried out. CAMAG HPTLC system equipped with Linomat V applicator, TLC scanner 3, Reprostar 3 and WIN CATS-4 software were used. Results: Preliminary phytochemical screening of the extract showed the presence of alkaloids, triterpenes, tannins, saponnins, glycosides, phenolic compounds and flavonoids. HPTLC finger printing of chloroform extract of leaf revealed 14 peaks with Rf values in the range of 0.03 to 0.95; ethyl acetate extract of leaf showed 6 peaks with Rf values in the range of 0.04 to 0.94 and 90% ethanolic extract of leaf revealed 11 peaks with Rf values in the range of 0.03 to 0.93. Conclusions: It can be concluded that HPTLC fingerprint analysis of leaf extract of Pisonea aculeata can be used as a diagnostic tool for the correct identification of the plant and it is useful as a phytochemical marker and also a good estimator of genetic variability in plant populations.