Simultaneous quantification of pharmacological markers quercetin, berberine HCl and curcumin using High-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) from polyherbal formulation

Quercetin, curcumin and berberine HCl have anti-acne, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant properties. In the present study an attempt has been made to develop a simple, precise, rapid, selective and cost-effective high-performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method for simultaneous estimation of quercetin, curcumin and berberine HCl from polyherbal gel prepared for the treatment of Acne. The method was developed using HPTLC silica gel GF254 precoated aluminium plate as a stationary phase. The solvent system consisted of Toluene, Ethyl acetate, Methanol, Formic acid. Densitometric analysis was carried out in the absorbance mode at 254nm. This system was found to give compact spots for quercetin, curcumin and berberine HCl at specific Rf values. The linearity of quercetin, curcumin and berberine HCl were obtained between 200 and 1000 ng/spot with good correlation coefficient values. The % of quercetin, curcumin and berberine HCl from polyherbal gel was found to be 99.42±0.98, 98.67±0.76% and 99.6±1.06% respectively, which was well within the limit. It was concluded that the developed HPTLC method would be an important tool in the quality control of polyherbal formulations.