HR-LCMS-Based Phytochemical Characterization of Bark Drugs from Selected Medicinal Plants

Bark drugs constitute an important component of traditional medicine and are widely used in Ayurvedic, Unani, and folk healthcare systems. The present investigation aims to evaluate and characterize the phytochemical composition of bark drugs obtained from selected medicinal plants of the Marathwada region, Maharashtra, with special emphasis on species belonging to the genus Ficus. The study integrates pharmacognostic evaluation, preliminary phytochemical screening, and advanced High-Resolution Liquid Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (HR-LCMS) analysis to identify bioactive constituents. Bark samples of Ficus amplissima, F. arnottiana, F. benjamina, F. carica, F. elastica, F. hispida, and F. microcarpa were collected, authenticated, processed, and extracted using suitable solvents. HR-LCMS profiling revealed the presence of pharmacologically significant compounds such as quercetin, rutin, kaempferol, gallic acid, caffeic acid, lupeol, betulinic acid and ursolic acid. The detected phytoconstituents exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, antimicrobial and hepatoprotective activities, supporting the ethnomedicinal relevance of these bark drugs. The study establishes chemical fingerprints for each species and provides scientific validation for their traditional therapeutic use, contributing to standardization, quality control and future drug discovery.