A validated method for analysis of Swerchirin in Swertia longifolia Boiss. by high performance liquid chromatography

Swertia spp. (Gentianaceae) grow widely in the eastern and southern Asian countries and are used as traditional medicine for gastrointestinal disorders. Swerchirin, one of the xanthones in Swertia spp., has many pharmacological properties, such as, antimalarial, antihepatotoxic, and hypoglycemic effects. Because of the pharmacological importance of Swerchirin in this investigation, it was purified from Swertia longifolia Boiss. as one of the main components and quantified by means of a validated high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique. Aerial parts of the plant were extracted with acetone 80%. Phenolic and non-phenolic constituents of the extract were separated from each other during several processes. The phenolic fraction was injected into the semi-preparative HPLC system, which consisted of a C(18) column and a gradient methanol: 0.1% formic acid mode. Using this method, we were able to purify six xanthones from the plant, in order to use them as standard materials. The analytical method was validated for Swerchirin as one of the most important components of the plant, with more pharmacological activities according to the validation parameters, such as, selectivity, linearity (r(2) > 0.9998), precision (≤3.3), and accuracy, which were measured by the determination of recovery (98-107%). The limits of detection and quantization were found to be 2.1 and 6.3 μg/mL, respectively. On account of the speed and accuracy, the UV-HPLC method may be used for quantitative analysis of Swerchirin.