BIONATURE

Background: Picrorhiza kurroa Royle ex Benth. is an important Ayurvedic drug whose rhizome constitutes the medicinal part. Establishment of pharmacognostical and analytical parameters is essential for its identification and quality evaluation.

Aim: The present study was undertaken to establish pharmacognostical, physicochemical, preliminary phytochemical, and HPTLC fingerprint parameters of the rhizome of P. kurroa.

Materials and Methods: The authenticated rhizome was evaluated for macroscopic, organoleptic, transverse-section, and powder-microscopic characteristics. Physicochemical evaluation included foreign matter, extractive values, total ash, loss on drying, and pH. Preliminary phytochemical screening was carried out on aqueous and ethanolic extracts. HPTLC fingerprinting was performed on the methanolic extract using silica gel 60 F254 aluminium plates and chloroform:methanol (8:2, v/v) as the mobile phase, with detection at 254 and 366 nm.

Results: The rhizome exhibited cylindrical morphology with a greyish-brown to dark-brown surface, bitter taste, and diagnostic microscopic features including cork, cortex, phloem, xylem, fibres, vessels, and starch-containing parenchyma. Physicochemical evaluation showed 0% foreign matter, alcohol-soluble extractive value of 32.81%, water-soluble extractive value of 36.28%, total ash of 2.98%, loss on drying of 4.12%, and a pH of 4.2. Aqueous and ethanolic extracts showed positive reactions for flavonoids, phenolic compounds, glycosides, terpenoids, and steroids. HPTLC profiling of the methanolic extract produced chromatographic patterns, with Rf values ranging from 0.319–0.502 at 254 nm and 0.318–0.768 at 366 nm.

Conclusion: The study establishes pharmacognostical, physicochemical, preliminary phytochemical, and chromatographic parameters for P. kurroa rhizome. The data may serve as reference standards for authentication, quality evaluation, and standardisation of the drug.