Saklani, P. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2020

Analyzing the effects of altitudes on the metabolic diversity and forskolin content in Coleus forskohlii roots by HPTLC and HPLC

IntroductionColeus forskohlii is an important medicinal plant native to India. It grows wild in a wide range of altitude in the Indian Himalayan region and contains some important phytochcemicals which possess remarkable medicinal properties. The plant contains terpenoid like Forskolin in its roots. ObjectiveConsidering the medicinal importance of C. forskohlii, being the only source of Forskolinand its availability over a wide altitude range, the effect of altitude on the metabolic diversity and forskolin content was assessed using the HPTLC and HPLC. MethodsFive populations of Coleus forskohlii collected from five locations of varying altitude from Uttarakhand, India. The plant roots were extracted with methanol by soxhlet extraction. The metabolic diversity was analyzed by employing HPTLC fingerprinting while forskolin was extracted and quantified by HPLC. ResultsSignificant differences were observed in the phytochemical composition through the HPTLC chromatograms among the studied population across the altitudes. The Gopeshwar population (1488m) showed highest number of bands on HPTLC chromatogram each of which corresponds to acompound. Results of HPLC shows differences in forskolin quantity in studied populations and the Piaplkoti population(1339m) showed highest forskolin accumulation. ConclusionThe present study confirms that altitude and changing environment affects the nature and quantity of secondary metabolites in C. forskohlii and the environmental conditions might be instrumental factor for intraspecific metabolic diversity. The Pipalkoti (1339m) and Gopeshwar (1488m) populations were found suitable for the forskolin production as well as other metabolites and these two populations can be propagated for commercial use.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Analyzing effect of altitudinal variation in Enzymatic antioxidants of Coleus forskohlii from Uttarakhand, India

Enzymatic antioxidant activity of the five populations of the medicinal plant Coleus forskohlii from five locations of varied altitudes was assayed to analyze the effect of altitude on the enzymatic antioxidant potential. The various enzymes assayed were SOD, CAT, POD, PPO, APX and GR. Highest activity for all the enzymes was observed at higher altitudes. Strong positive correlation was observed between the protein content, enzyme activities and altitude. CAT, POD and GR activity increases significantly with the altitude while SOD was least affected. APX and PPO shows positive correlation. High activity of all these enzymes seems to be to combat the high oxidative stress at higher altitudes. Results of the present study suggest that Coleus forskohlii population growing at a higher altitude has higher antioxidant potential than those at lower altitude. Thus, the population of Coleus forskohlii from a higher altitude can be used as a source of antioxidants and for commercial propagation.

plant biology↗