Comparative HPTLC analysis of shatavarin IV, sarsasapogenin, caffeic acid, β-sitosterol and lupeol in roots and cladodes of ten Asparagus L. ssp. from North India.

In the present research, ten species of Asparagus from North India have been analysed for secondary metabolites. The quantitative study of shatavarin IV, sarsasapogenin, caffeic acid, β-sitosterol, and lupeol in the cladodes and roots of Asparagus was conducted using a validated HPTLC method. The content of sarsasapogenin was found highest in the cladodes of A. racemosus (11.20 ± 0.025 mg/g DW) and roots of A. officinalis (5.95 ± 0.024 mg/g DW). Shatavarin IV was found highest in cladodes of A. densiflorus (6.72 ± 0.02 mg/g DW) and roots of A. adscendens (4.68 ± 0.015 mg/g DW). Caffeic acid was found most abundantly in A. officinalis (65.87 ± 0.021 mg/g DW), while β-sitosterol (9.36 ± 0.004 mg/g DW) and lupeol (5.91 ± 0.004 mg/g DW) were found highest in A. falcatus among the ten species. Overall findings showed that A. adscendens, A. densiflorus, A. falcatus and A. retrofractus have also rich quantity of examined secondary metabolites as compared to commercially important species (A. officinalis).