Popularly known as passion fruit, some species of the genus Passiflora are widely used in folk medicines, such as sedatives and tranquilizers in many countries. Although these plants are employed for the same purposes, research with different species of Passiflora has indicated their heterogeneous chemical compositions. Since different chemical compositions can result in varying degrees of therapeutic efficiency, quality control based on the chemical constituents of each species is essential. To that end, the aim of this study was to compare pharmacognostically species of Passiflora in order to establish a chromatographic profile for the quality control of drugs in herbal medicines containing passion fruit. The study was conducted by collecting samples of leaves from twelve Passiflora taxa (i.e., ten species and two forms of P. edulis) – P. actinia, P. alata, P. amethystina, P. capsularis, P. cincinnata, P. edulis f. flavicarpa, P. edulis f. edulis, P. incarnata, P. morifolia, P. urnifolia, P. coccinea, and P. setacea – from different locations and obtaining their chromatographic profiles via thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. Both methods used the flavonoid C-glycosides isoorientin, orientin, vitexin, and isovitexin as reference compounds and could ultimately establish specific profiles for each species. The chromatographic analyses discussed here can be used to assist in determining the quality and authenticity of herbal drugs derived from Passiflora species.
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