Author(s): Indu M Menon, Jollykutty Eapen and MS Deepa

Abstract: Guggulu, oleo gum resin from the plant Commiphora wightii, is a renowned and potent drug used in Ayurvedic formulations. Before incorporating in formulations, Guggulu has to be purified as per Ayurvedic texts. The purification method adopted in the present study was swedana (boiling) in Triphala-Guduchi kwatha (decoction of T. chebula, T. bellerica, E. officinalis and T. cordifolia). There are no studies performed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of purified Guggulu. Therefore, an attempt to find out the anti-bacterial activity of purified Gugguluwas done. Phytochemical screening and quantification of Guggulsterone E and Z were also evaluated and compared the values with that of raw Guggulu. It was observedthat the purified Guggulu hadmore antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus vulgaris. There were differences in the phytochemical parameters including the mean quantities of Guggulsterones E and Z before and after purification.