Identification of flavonoids in leaves of seven wild growing Salvia L. (Lamiaceae) species from Iran

This study documents the flavonoid constituents of seven Salvia species in Iran namely S.atropatana Bunge, S. limbata C. A. Mey, S. sclarea L., S. ceratophylla L., S. multicaulis Vahl.,S. hydrangea Dc. ex Benth., and S. eremophila Boiss. The studied species were collected fromtheir natural habitats in Iran and were analyzed for their flavonoid constituents using twodimensionalthin layer chromatography with silica gel 60F 254 as solid phase. The purificationof flavonoid compounds of each species was carried out using column chromatography withsephadex LH20. Based on the results, 53 flavonoid compounds were identified. The mostfrequent flavonoid subclasses among seven Salvia species were flavones (35.7%) and the leastof these were dihydroflavonoles (5.3%). The most important structural variation observed inflavonoid was related to hydroxylation patterns. Among the identification of flavonoid, eight ofthem were reported for the first time in Salvia species of Iran. The highest numbers of flavonoidcompounds were identified in S. multicaulis and S. hydrangea. It can be concluded that theflavonoid constituents seem to be a suitable indicator in chemotaxonomic studies in Salviagenus.