Survey of medicinal plants is very important in the field of medicine and pharmacology Surveying a medicinal plant is the process of observing, collecting and evaluating the characteristics of a medicinal plant in order to determine its chemical, pharmacological and its effect. Medicinal plants contain many active substances that have therapeutic effects and can be used to produce new drugs. This helps to expand the drug market and improve human health. Here are the steps to take when surveying a medicinal plant:
Identify plant objects to be studied:
Based on documents, experience handed down, folk remedies or tips.
Determine the scientific name, which family and genus this plant belongs to.
The substances in this plant, this genus, this family have what are common and their biosynthetic process.
Collecting, processing and preserving raw materials:
Collecting raw materials with correct scientific names, avoiding confusion.
Good ingredients, high active ingredient content depends on:
- Harvesting period: harvested at the time when the active ingredients in the plant have the highest and most stable concentrations, usually based on proven experience over many years, or previous survey works.
- Parts collected: usually the whole plant or individual parts such as: roots, bark, wood, buds, leaves, tops, flowers, fruits, seeds… Based on research documents or long-term experience that people have We choose which part of the plant to collect to get the most active ingredients.
- Harvesting experience: each type of medicinal herb has different harvesting times such as when the flowers are not yet bloomed, the plants have flowers, the flowers are fully bloomed or the fruit ripens period…
- Processing of raw materials: After harvesting, raw materials are dried by different methods such as outdoor drying, cassava drying, hot and dry air drying, infrared drying.
- Preservation of raw materials: Depending on the type of medicinal herbs, there is an appropriate preservation method. After packaging, it must be stored in a dry place away from direct sunlight.
Extraction of medicinal herbs: Selection of appropriate solvents, extraction tools and appropriate extraction methods to create extracts.
Investigation of chemical composition by thin layer chromatography: Thin layer chromatography is a technique to separate substances that is carried out when the mobile phase is moved through the stationary phase on which the mixture of substances to be separated is placed. In the process of moving through the adsorbent layer, the components in the sample mixture are moved on the thin layer in the direction of the mobile phase at different speeds to obtain chromatograms that help detect the number of traces in the sample.
Run column chromatography to separate pure substances: Column chromatography is a method of separating, dissociating, and separating substances based on their different distribution between mobile and stationary phases. When in contact with the stationary phase, the components of the mixture will be distributed between the mobile and stationary phases according to their properties. Different substances will have different affinities for the mobile and stationary phases. In the process of moving along the chromatographic system from one stationary phase layer to another, the adsorption and desorption process will be repeated. Substances with high affinity for the stationary phase will move more slowly through the chromatographic system than those that interact with this phase weaker. Thanks to this feature, it is possible to separate substances through chromatography.
Determination of chemical structure: using spectrometric methods such as infrared (IR), magnetic resonance (NMR), mass (MS) spectroscopy to determine the chemical structure of compounds to determine the chemical structure of compounds. determine the chemical structure of the isolated compound.
Determination of biological activity of compounds: Evaluation of the effects of medicinal plants using pharmacological and biological testing methods such as testing for antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, etc.
The process of surveying medicinal plants is a complicated process and requires high precision. However, it provides important information on the properties of natural compounds and provides the scientific basis for their use in medical and industrial applications.