Determination of cucurbitacin E in some selected herbs of ayurvedic importance through RP-HPLC

ABSTRACT

Background: The consumption of the fruits of cucurbitaceae plants is widely popular among Indians dueto their various nutritional and medicinal purposes. Some of these plants are well reported in Ayurvedadue to their potential therapeutic importance. In particular, the plants of this family are wellcharacterized by the presence of its bitter principle, Cucurbitacin E which differs within the speciesdue to its genetic variations.Objectives: The objective of the study was to develop a validated RP-HPLC method for standardization insome widely consumed cucurbits with cucurbitacin E as a marker compound.Materials and methods: The RP-HPLC method was developed with a reverse phase C18 column, usingacetonitrile and water (1% glacial acetic acid) as mobile phase (7030 v/v). The flow rate and lmax wereoptimized at 1 mL/min and 230 nm respectively. The HPLC method was validated in terms of accuracy,specificity, sensitivity, and repeatability as per ICH guideline.Results: The calibration curve was found linear in the concentration range of 1e100 mg/mL. The % RSD ofprecision and recovery was found to be <2%, which confirms high repeatability of the method. The results indicated that the content of cucurbitacin E was highest (0.0663% w/w) in Cucurbita pepo whereasLagenaria siceraria contains the lowest (0.0356% w/w).Conclusion: The study was able to explore the variation of cucurbitacin E content in some selected foodplants of Cucurbitaceae family. The applicability of the method can be established in nutraceutical industry for the effective quality control of cucurbits for safe human consumption.