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Abstract
A simple and reproducible technique for the quantitation of the main monoterpenoid indole alkaloids from aerial tissues of Catharanthus roseus, based on in situ densitometry‐thin layer chromatography, is described. The sensitivity of this method was enough to detect the amounts of ajmalicine, catharanthine, and vindoline present in 100 mg of dried leaf tissue and in different in vitro culture systems. The main advantage of this method is that it allows the proper separation of these alkaloids using a single solvent mixture, as well as the scanning of the corresponding spots at a single wavelength, reducing the number of chromatographic plates required and the time invested in the analysis.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by National Council for Research and Technology (CONACyT, Mexico) grant 31608B and with funds from PIFOP (National Program for Graduate Studies, CONACyT). EH‐D was recipient of a CONACyT scholarship for doctoral studies.
The authors wish to thank M. Sc. Miriam Monforte‐González and Mildred Carrillo‐Pech for their skillful technical assistance in TLC development and to Dr. Maria de Lourdes Miranda‐Ham for her critical review of the manuscript.