Phytochemical and Preclinical Screening of Aseptically Produced Herbal Raw Material: Bacopa monnieri

The demand for herbal raw material has increased tremendously due to renewed interest in plant-based medicines, especially in developed countries. This has led to the indiscriminate cutting and collection of medicinal plants from natural resources resulting in depletion of natural resources and in some cases extinction of species. In the recent past, aseptically grown raw material and cell cultures have received recognition as an alternative source for the production of herbal raw material and chemical constituents. A low concentration of therapeutically important chemical constituents, which is directly related to the efficacy of the plant, was the major limitation in the commercial application of aseptically grown raw material and cell cultures. Due to this limitation, the acceptance of aseptically regenerated plants in the world of herbal medicines and Ayurvedic products was not very encouraging. In the present investigation, we have not only established the protocol for aseptic culture of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Pennell, but also checked the aseptically grown material for its chemical constituents and efficacy through established bioassay models. Assessment of the presence of major phytochemicals and in vitro preclinical bioassays indicated that aseptically grown shoots can be a better source of raw material. This can stop further depletion of the species from nature and also provide a consistent quality raw material. Aseptically grown improved quality shoots can also be good quality planting material for standardized cultivation practice. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________