Pharmacognostic Studies on Leaf of Operculina turpethum (L.) Silva Manso

Operculina turpethum (L.) Silva Manso is a perennial medicinal plant of the family Convolvulacae. Since ages, the plant has been used for the treatment of various diseases. Use of the plant for treating various types of diseases is mentioned in Ayurvedic treatise like Charaka Samhita. But there were no sufficient reports regarding the pharmacognostic characteristics of leaf of the plant. So the present work was designed and conducted to evaluate the pharmacognostic properties of leaf of Operculina turpethum. Study of macroscopic characters of the leaf revealed the presence of polymorphic leaves with respect to both shape and size. Leaves were found to be simple, amphistomatic with ciliate margin and reticulate venation. Paracytic type of stomata was noticed in the plant. Powder analysis of the leaf revealed the presence of mineral depositions of various shapes. In fluorescent study, the leaf powder exhibited different colours with different reagents. Various physicochemical parameters studied for the dried leaf powder gave satisfactory results. Soxhlet extraction of the dried leaf powder was carried out with non-polar to polar solvents. Preliminary phytochemical screening of extract revealed the presence of alkaloids, terpenoids, steroids, cardiac glycosides, phenols and flavonoids. The study opened a window to the bioprospecting of leaf of