Isolation and Biological Activity of β-Sitosterol and Stigmasterol from the Roots of Indigofera heterantha

The Fabaceae family (Leguminosae) consists of approximately 650 genera and 18,000 species, it is one of the largest Angiosperm families [1,2]. The genus Indigofera comprises around 700 species that are distributed geographically in tropical regions [3]. I. heterantha locally known as ghoreja or kainthaye (in Pashtho), Jangli methi (in Urdu) and Himalayan Indigo (in English) extensively spread in Northern regions of Pakistan and possessing high medicinal importance in the indigenous system of medicine. It is a shrub of 30 to 60 cm tall and the leaves are imparipinnately compound, while the fruits are long cylindrical 1.5 cm with 10-12 seeds [4]. I. heterantha is used as herbal medicine as well as folk medicine to treat gastrointestinal disorder and abdominal pain [4]. I. heterantha roots showed antioxidant, free radical scavenging activity and antidiabetic activity using Glucose uptake in yeast cells assay [5]. Various constituents have been isolated from the I. heterantha exhibited inhibitory activity against the enzyme lipoxygenase [6]. Other compounds like saponins, quinines, tannins, garlic acid, caffeic acid, myricetin, quercetin myricetin and galangin were also reported [7]. The chemical constituents like kaempferitrin [8], louisfieserone, indigotin [9], (S) indispicine [10], benzofuran, dibenzofuran [11], arabinofuranoside [12], 12-oleanen-3, 11-dione, afromosin, genistein, isoliquiritigenin [13], rutin [14] endecaphyllin A1 and hiptagin [15], have been isolated and reported from various species of genus Indigofera. Keeping in view the above medicinal importance of this genus the medicinal plant I. heterantha was selected for phytochemical and pharmacological investigation. The aim of this research work was to isolate chemical constituents from the roots of I. heterantha and to test it for antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory activities.