Medicines of cardiac glycosides are irreplaceable at in the chronic heart failure treatment especially if the violation of a heart rhythm is a concomitant disease. Nowadays only herbs are the sources of their manufacturing. This group of biologically active compounds is rather rare and is found only in limited number of plant families including the family Convallariaceae.
In this family there are two very widespread plants: a lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis L.) and a solomon's seal (Polygonatum odoratum Druce). Raw materials of C.majalis are used long since in scientific medicine as a source of cardiac glycosides of strophanthine group, mainly the convallatoxinum. At the same time P.odoratum is considered inadmissible impurity in raw material of C.majalis. The aim of this work was the comparative research of cardiac glycosides in P.odoratum and C.majalis.
The leaves of both plants which were collected in stage of flowering, were used as the research objects. The collected leaves were dried up, crushed and then the extraction has been taken from the researched samples with using 70% ethanol.
The TLC method with using solvent system - ethyl acetate:ethanol:water (81:11:8) and standard samples of cardiac glycosides has help to establish that the convallatoxinum contains in both plants.
Quantitative determination of convallatoxinum amount has been carried out by two methods:
- spectrophotometry - by using absorption of UF-light with the wavelength of 494 nanometers by a chromogen complex which has been formed by addition picric acid in the researched solution;
- by common HPLC method.
As a result it has been established that the convallatoxinum amount determined by photometry was 0,025% and 0,035%; by HPLC method – 0,021% and 0,028% for C.majalis and P.odoratum respectively.
In conclusion that the leaves of Polygonatum odoratum are disposable herb raw material for manufacturing cardiac glycosides of Strophantus group.