Phytochemical constituents of some plants used by the tribals of Dakshin Dinajpur district for medicinal purposes

Abstract

Various phytochemical constituents including alkaloids, phenols, and ascorbic acids were assessed and compared in the four medicinal plants of different families. Four plants used locally for different medicinal purposes were selected for a comparison of their phytochemical constituents. The plants investigated were Clerodendrum viscosum, Moringa oleifera, Cinnamomum tamala and Scoparia dulcis. All these plants were found to contain the active principles including alkaloids, tannin, saponin, terpenoid, flavonoid, cardic glycoside. Steroid was present in C. viscosum, C. tamala, and M. oleifera but absent in S. dulcis. The assay for the quantitative determination of phenols and ascorbic acids revealed that C. tamala contained the highest amount of phenol and ascorbic acids where as C. viscosum contained the least amount.

Keywords: phytochemical constituents, medicinal plants, active principles, quantitative determination, spectrophotometric.