RESUMO
Demarcation of species is the prime endeavor of Biosystematics. conventional morphological parameters and the use of biochemical components in solving taxonomic disputes are gaining importance with the help bioactive phenolic compound as a genetic marker to assess species affinity. In present study methanolic extracts of six different Caralluma species were carried out through phytochemical screening and HPLTC analysis to ascertain relative relationship between active compounds., High Performance TLC on silica gel 60 F254 TLC aluminum sheet was used to separate the active compounds present in the extracts and scanned at 254 nm. The results revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins and steroids. A partial biochemical profile for selected constituents of species was compared with that of other species in Caralluma by HPTLC to ascertain their relative phylogenetic position. From this phytochemical analysis, the paired affinity, group affinity and isolation value of each of these pair of species of Caralluma are expressed in percentage to study the species homology.