Pharmacognostic evaluation and establishment of quality parameters of seeds of Cuminum cyminum L.

Abstract

Cuminum cyminum L. (Family Apiaceae), is a medium sized annual herb whose all parts are useful. Herbal drug standardization is an essential step in order to assess the quality of drugs, based on the concentration of their active principle, physical and chemical standards. An attempt has been made to highlight this herbal medicine through present study which may assist in standardization for quality, purity and sample identification. Various standardization parameters like morphological features, microscopic evaluation, physico-chemical evaluations (foreign matter, loss on drying, ash values, extractive values), preliminary phytochemical screening, thin-layer chromatography, and fluorescence analysis of powdered seeds were carried out and the qualitative parameters were reported. These studies provided referential information for correct identification and standardization of this plant material.