Physico-chemical,phytochemical evaluation and dpph-scavenging antioxidant potential in medicinal plants used for herbal formulation in Pakistan

The active parts of 11 medicinal plants were analyzed for physico-chemical evaluation,phytochemical determinationand antioxidant activity. the physico-chemical evaluation revealed that highest water soluble extractive was from origanumvulgare (38%),highest chloroform extractive was from psoralea corylifolia (21%); highest ethanolic extractive was that ofacorus calamus (11%) and the highest hexane extractive value was for arnebia nobilis (9.8%). the total ash contentevaluation indicated that achillea millefolium yielded (20.2%) and rauvolfia serpentina yielded (41.6%); these values aremuch higher than the standard ash values for these plants indicating that these drugs are highly adulterated and substandard.the highest essential oil was yielded by acorus calamus (3.2%). the highest saponin percentage was analyzed in acoruscalamus (8.9%),while the alkaloids percentage was determined at 21% in peganum harmala. among all the plants assessedfor dpph free radical scavenging activity,the maximum activity was shown by paeonia emodi (85.8%),followed byachillea millefolium (81.7%) and origanum vulgare (80.3%).