Centella asiatica (L) Urban (Apiaceae/Umbelliferae) is a popular medicinal plant extensively used in
traditional medicine for wound healing and variety of inflammatory disorders. The
aim of this study is to determine the content of triterpenoid derivatives (asiaticoside,
madecassoside, asiatic acid and madecassic acid) and phenolic components (chlorogenic
acid, rutin, quercetin and kaempferol) in plant samples grown in different countries
and harvested in different seasons. Methanolic extracts of C. asiatica collected from six different countries and in different months were subjected to
HPLC-DAD analysis. Separation of the phytochemicals was achieved on C18 analytical
column with a gradient mobile phase consisting of 0.3% phosphoric acid in water and
acetonitrile. The eluents from the HPLC column was monitored at 210nm. The analysis
of four principal Centella triterpenoids showed significant variation (p <0.05 ANOVA) in different plant sources and different collection months during one
year. The Australian sample was shown to contain higher amount of the investigated
compounds (asiaticoside and madecassoside) than other countries (Figure 1). The results also showed that total triterpene content of Australian Centella reached
their highest levels in the summer months and their lowest values in the winter season
of the southern hemisphere (Figure 2). Findings in this study provide useful information for optimising the triterpenoid
content of C. asiatica plant for medicinal purposes.
Figure 1. Percentage of titerpenoid derivates found in C. asiatica crude samples from different countries, values are means±SD, n=3.
Figure 2. Fluctuation pattern of total triterpene contents of C. asiatica during one year, values are means±SD, n=3.
Acknowledgements: This Project is supported by the International Science Linkages established under
the Australian Government's innovation statement, Backing Australia's Ability, and
the National Institute of Complementary Medicine (NICM) of Australia.
