Indian Journal of Science and Technology

Abstract

In this paper we have identified accessions of a traditional medicinal plant, Adhatoda vasica Nees, from eight ecogeographically distinct nodes of Western Ghats of Malabar area, India. Alkaloids have been extracted from the leaves and analysed qualitatively using spectroscopic techniques. A method has been developed to determine relative amounts of one of the active ingredients – vasicine, using Liquid Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The study has revealed samples from Kanjikode and Wadakencherry to have high amounts of vasicine compared to the rest in the study area. Future work should be directed in evaluating samples from similar forests of Western Ghats of Kerala and developing a robust database of metabolite content of various accessions. From such a database, elite chemotypes could be screened and suggested for cultivation by farmers for gaining better income. 
Keywords: Adhatoda vasica, Alkaloids, LC-MS, Medicinal Plants, Vasicine, Western Ghats