Standardization and Preliminary Phytochemical Screening of Polypodium vulgare Linn.

Abstract

Traditionally, Polypodium vulgare (family: Polypodiaceae) is used in the treatment of jaundice, dropsy, scurvy, and with the combination of mallows it is used to remove the hardness of spleen. The roots and rhizomes are also used as expectorant, laxative, stomachic, cholagogue, alternative and antistress. Current study has been performed to investigate the phytochemical and pharmacognostic properties of rhizomes of P. vulgare. Various physiochemical parameters evaluated were: Morphology, Microscopy, Ash value (4.54 ± 0.05), Water soluble ash (2.22 ± 0.06), acid soluble ash (1.25 ± 0.08), Petroleum ether extractive value (4.20 ± 0.10), Alcohol soluble extractive value (11.85 ± 0.18) and water-soluble extractive value (15.85 ± 0.12). Dried Powdered plant material were sequentially extracted via solvents in increasing order of polarity viz., n-hexane, chloroform, methanol and water and all extracts were screened for presence of different classes of phytoconstituents. Lipids were found in hexane extract, triterpenoids in chloroform extract, carbohydrates, proteins, flavonoids, saponins, and tannins in methanol extract, and carbohydrates, proteins, saponins, and tannins in aqueous extract, according to the phytochemical investigation.