ISHS Acta Horticulturae 96: II International Symposium on Spices and medicinal Plants
STUDY OF BITTER CONSTITUENTS OF THE GENTIAN ROOT BY HIGH PRESSURE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY |
| Authors: | V. Quercia, N. Pierini, V. Castagnola, G. Pettinari, G. Battaglino |
| Abstract:
The Gentiana is known and used with therapeutic purpose from the earliest times /1/, and enclosed in the most important European Pharmacopoeias, it however is not enough and adequately characterized in the routine controls. Also in the European Pharmacopoeia the assays are limited to: anatomy of the roots and of the powder, not carbonizing and hydrosoluble substances determination. In other Pharmacopoeias of European Countries like: Germany, Austria and Switzerland the evaluation of bitterness by organoleptic assay is provided. This is defined as reciprocal value of the dilution of an extract found still bitter. This parameter results rather empiric and clearly subjective considering that the different Pharmacopoeias use various reference standards. However it is necessary to base the quantitative determination of Gentiana on the bitter substances, these in fact give the therapeutic activity to the drug. The bitter substances identified and isolated from different Gentiana species available on the market, are reported in table 1 with the bitterness and the per cent contents in the roots /2/. The amarogentin, the amaroswerin and the amaropanin are the determina t reason of the most of bitterness of Gentiana, although they are present in the drug only in a poor concentration. In the most of European Pharmacopoeias, besides to the Gentiana lutea, are enclosed and therefore officinal plants considered also the roots of the Gentiana pannonica Scop., Gentiana punctata L. and Gentiana purpurea L., very diffuse in the alpine habitat. | |
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