QUANTIFICATION OF ELLAGIC ACID IN DADIMASHTAKA CHURNA BY HPTLC METHOD

Herbal drugs, singularly and in combinations, contain a myriad of compounds in complex matrices in which no single active constituent is responsible for the overall efficacy. This creates a challenge in establishing quality control standards for raw materials and standardization of finished herbal drugs. Traditionally only a few markers of pharmacologically active constituents were employed to assess the quality and authenticity of complex herbal medicines.In the present study, an attempt has been made to develop a HPTLC (High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography) method for quantitative estimation of marker compound ellagic acid in laboratory prepared authentic formulation and in commercial formulation of Dadimashtaka Churna. As per Bhaisajaya Ratnavali it is used for the treatment of Diarrhoea. The key ingredient of Dadimashtaka churna is Pomegranate (Dadima). The two formulations were subjected to hydroalcoholic extractions using Soxhlet apparatus. Ellagic acid was quantified in the above two extracts by using HPTLC. It was observed that other constituent’s presents in the formulation did not interfere with the peak of Ellagic acid. Thus, the solvent system of n- hexane and ethyl acetate is found to be an ideal mobile phase for separation of Ellagic acid. Standard ellagic showed a single peak in HPTLC chromatogram. The percentage recovery studies revealed a recovery of 99.4% w/w of ellagic acid, thus proving the accuracy and precision of the analysis. Since this method resolves and quantifies ellagic acid effectively, it can be used to quantify the concentration of ellagic acid in the herbal formulations. Key Words: Dadimashtaka churna , Ellagic acid ,Quantification , HPTLC , Validation