Studies of extraction efficiency and comparison of different extraction methods for determination of Podophyllotoxin in the rootstock of Podophyllum hexandrum Royle

The present study was undertaken to standardize extraction methods to extract podophyllotoxin from the rootstock of Podophyllum hexandrum Royle. Five different extraction methods viz. soxhlet extraction, reflux extraction, cold extraction, sonication assisted extraction and microwave assisted extraction were used to re-collect crude extracts and podophyllotoxin content from rootstock. Crude extracts were analyzed by using HPLC-UV for podophyllotoxin content. Results revealed that extraction duration and solvent used play a significant role in extraction process. Among all, the reflux method with methanol solvent for four hour extraction duration concluded to be the best method in terms of total extract (38.82%) and podophyllotoxin content (5.79%).