« Back to Farmacia Journal 4/2012

PRELIMINARY RESEARCH REGARDING THE THERAPEUTIC USES OF URTICA DIOICA L. NOTE I. THE POLYPHENOLS EVALUATION

IOANA NENCU¹, LAURIAN VLASE^2*, VIORICA ISTUDOR¹, LIGIA ELENA DUŢU¹, CERASELA ELENA GÎRD¹

Download Full Article PDF

The use of stinging nettle leaves for the treatment of diabetes mellitus without a scientific evaluation, persuaded us to study them, in order to obtain pharmacological active extracts. According to scientific data, polyphenols are known as HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors and have potent anti-glycation activity. These compounds are the main active principles in the Urticae folium. The aim of this study was to evaluate the polyphenols’content (polyphenolcarboxilic acids = PPCA, and flavonoids) of stinging nettle leaves, harvested from culture and wild flora, originated from Racari, Dambovita district, Romania. Spectrophotometric and chromatographic methods were used. A new HPLC method for the identification and quantification of caffeic and chlorogenic acids from Urticae folium was also developed. The highest contents of polyphenolcarboxilic acids (expressed as % of chlorogenic acid) and flavonoids (expressed as % of rutin) were found in the leaves of wild nettles harvested in the month of March (4.2295% chlorogenic acid and 0.6237% rutin). The polyphenols’ content is slightly lower than the ones mentioned in the scientific literature. The content of PPCA decreases from March till September, both in wild and cultivated samples. The variation of the flavonoids’content differs with the origin of raw material (culture or spontaneus flora). The new HPLC method for polyphenols’analysis is reproductible.