PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION OF IN-VITRO ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF CLASSICAL SIDDHA HERBAL FORMULATION ¬‘THURINJI MANAPAGU’ (CITRUS MEDICA SYRUP)

Siddha science is an ancient way of healing which uses plants, minerals and metals for medicinal preparation. Research on herbs is gaining significant interest for discovering new drug molecules. In this context, it is essential to investigate the numerous traditional formulations documented in classical Siddha literature. The Thurinji manapagu contains Citrus medica and Saccharum officinarum is a traditional herbal syrup formulation which is indicated for nausea and vomiting, hypertension in clinical practice of siddha. The phytochemical analysis and free radical scavenging effect of the Thurinji manapagu was studied in this paper to explore the antioxidative efficacy of the drug. The qualitative phytochemicals of Thurinji manapagu was determined by standard protocols. The scavenging effect against the free radicals of the drug Thurinji manapagu was measured by the following in-vitro methods: DPPH radical scavenging assay, H2O2, ABTS, NO scavenging assay and studied through U.V spectrophotometer. The phytochemical screening of drug reveals the presence of phenols, tannins, saponins, coumarins etc. The results of the antioxidative capacity of the drug on all four assays show dose dependent and IC50 values are obtained by linear regression analysis by using percentage inhibition and concentrations. It is concluded, Thurinji manapagu possesses an antioxidative capacity and hence this can be used as an adjuvant supplementation for numerous pathological state which is associated with oxidative stress.