Quantitative Evaluation of Anticancer Marker Levels of an Ayurvedic Preparation, "Virala"

Abstract

Virala (Diospyros tomentosa Roxb.), an important Ayurvedic preparation, was chemically screened and found to accumulate significant levels of the anticancer markers betulin and betulinic acid. In order to identify the high yielding sample of these two markers, a number of virala samples collected from different parts of India have been screened by high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC). The sample collected from local areas (20°15′N, 85°50′E) was found to contain the highest levels of betulinic acid (0.43%), whereas the sample collected from Vijayawada (16°30′N, 80°36′E) was found to contain maximum betulin (1.13%). Interesting correlations have been drawn between accumulations of these two markers versus the height of place above sea level where samples were collected.

Keywords: :

• Anticancer Marker
• Betulin
• Betulinic Acid
• Diospyros Tomentosa
• Hptlc
• Virala