The pharmacognostic study of some species of the genus poplar (<i>Populus</i> L.) growing in the Samara Region

Abstract

About 30 species of poplar (Populus L.) grow on the territory of the Russian Federation, however only five of them are pharmacopoeial. The buds of pharmacopoeial poplar species are used as medicinal plant raw materials. The chemical composition of the buds is quite diverse, the leading group is flavonoids (about 30%). The flavanones like pinostrobin (5-hydroxy-7-methoxyflavanone) and pinocembrin (5,7-dihydroxyflavanone) are diagnostically significant for the representatives of the genus Populus. Along with pharmacopoeia species, poplar hybrids are promising for study and further use, they have a number of advantages. One of such promising species is Populus rubrinervis Hort. Alb. The composition of the buds of Populus rubrinervis hasnt been studied yet. As a result of the conducted studies, we found phenolic compounds, presumably flavonoids, in the composition of both the buds of Populus rubrinervis and pharmacopoeia species with the use of thin-layer chromatography and spectrophotometry.