Chromatographic Characterization for Quantitative Measurement of Phytoconstituents in Polyherbal Suspension and Evaluation of its Nutritional Efficacy on Malnourished Rats

Background: The present study demonstrated HPLC method development for quantitative measurement of phytoconstituents present in food-grade polyherbal suspension (PHS) and evaluated its nutritional efficacy in the rat. Procedure: The PHS was prepared by mixing the dried extracts of Nelumbo nucifera (NN) seeds, seeds of Euryale ferox (EF) and fruits of Trapa natans (TN) with other excipients. The PHS was analyzed using the HPLC method for the development and validation of the phytoconstituents present in PHS as compared to standard biomarkers. The nutritional efficacy of PHS was evaluated on malnourished rats by observing body weight, food intake, biochemical and haematological data. Results: Results exhibited that the developed HPLC method was simple, rapid, sensitive and cheap for the determination of phytoconstituents in the PHS. The nutritional composition of NN, EF and TN revealed that protein content was highest in TN (21.30%), NN (14.30%) and EF (13.16%) respectively. PHS restored the haematological data of malnourished rats with values of 7.37 103/μL, RBC; 11.75 g/dL, Hb; and 1147 10³/μL, platelets at 400 mg/kg dose compared to the control group. The result of biochemical data exhibited that cholesterol and triglyceride levels were 36.08 and 60.28 mg/dL, respectively after treatment with PHS (400 mg/kg). PHS also enhanced the bodyweight of animals in comparison to the control group. Conclusion: Thus, PHS may be an alternative nutritional formulation against protein deficiency-induced malnutrition.