Fingerprint analysis of Shankhpushpi for species discrimination by HPLC coupled with chemometric methods

Abstract

Shankhpushpi, traded in the Indian market is having different controversial botanical sources, that is, Convolvulus pluricaulis Choisy (Convulvulaceae), Clitoria ternatea Linn. (Papilionaceae), and Evolvulus alsinoides Linn. (Convulvulaceae). Simple, accurate and precise RP-HPLC-PDA method was established for quality assessment and discrimination of Shankhpushpi samples using chromatographic profiling method. In distinction to the routine method of quality assessment which uses single or dual marker peaks, all chromatographic data (retention times/variables) were used. Fifteen shankhpushpi samples were purchased from the market including authenticated samples of all three C. pluricaulis, C. ternatea, E. alsinoides. A total of 18 samples were analyzed by HPLC and the dataset was then treated with multivariate analyses like PCA and HCA by using MINITAB software. Thus, the developed method was useful in discriminating the Shankhpushpi samples and for the perseverance of quality control.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

Keywords:

• Fingerprint profiling
• multivariate
• HCA
• PCA
• RP-HPLC-PDA
• Shankhpushpi