Evaluation of Phytochemicals in Select Medicinal Plants of the Caesalpinia Species

A comparative study of phytochemicals was made on leaf extracts of two herbal plants- Caesalpinia pulcherrima Swartz (a domesticated striking ornamental shrub) and Caesalpinia bonduc (L) Roxb (a wild spiny shrub) belonging to the family Caesalpinaceae. The leaf extracts were prepared with 4 different selected solvents for each plant to adjudge the major active principle in the solvent that has value in rational drug design. The qualitative analysis of phytochemicals encompasses carbohydrates, tannins, saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, betacyanins, quinones, terepenoids, phenols, glycosides, cardiac glycosides and the results were the mean values of the triplet readings. The quantitative total phenol estimation has carved out the fact that the wild plants is contributing high values for the secondary metabolites than the domesticated plant triggering the notion domestication, the need of the hour for the distinct endangered wild medicinal plants shall be done without the loss of the quality of the drug, the property of the medicinal plants as a boon to the future generation.