HPLC Analysis of Gedunin in MAMA Decoction, an Antimalarial Herbal Remedy in Nigeria

MAMA decoction is an herbal preparation certified in Nigeria for the treatment of malaria. This study evaluated some parameters with a view to provide quality control standards for the decoction. A mixture of the component leaves of Mangifera indica L., Anacardiaceae, Azadirachta indica A. Juss., Meliaceae, Morinda lucida Benth., Rubiaceae, and Alstonia boonei De Wild., Apocynaceae, was extracted using the decoction method. The filtrate was freeze-dried into a powdered extractive. Pharmacognostical and physicochemical standards, qualitative and quantitative determinations of gedunin by thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography were determined. The extractive yield of the decoction was about 19%, and the moisture content of the plant leaves (6% to 16%) was within the pharmacopoeial limit. Gedunin was present at 0.42 μg/ml of decoction (0.04% w/v). The freeze-dried preparation contained 0.22 μg/100 μg of extractive (0.2% w/w), while A. indica leaf had 0.011 μg gedunin/100 μg of dried leaf (0.01% w/w). The study provided a set of reproducible analytical conditions for the quality control of MAMA decoction. Graphical abstract