Qualitative and Quantitative dynamicity of bioactive phytocompounds in seasonal harvesting of medicinal plant Argyreia nervosa (Burm.f.) Bojer.: a multimode investigation through spectrophotometer, HPLC and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrome

Phytochemical dynamicity of medicinal herbs which largely depends on seasons governs the efficacies. By this logic, improper cultivation of roots is not only void of the active principles, but also destroys the natural resources. A validated HPLC method has been established for quantification of biomarker scopoletin in harvested roots of Argyreia nervosa of six different seasons and the phytochemicals were investigated by spectrophotometric methods. Qualitative identifications of secondary metabolites were performed by LC-MS. Morpho-anatomical variations were evaluated through microscopical studies. The study revealed that the methanolic extract of roots of spring days are containing highest (0.1585%) amount of scopoletin, winter and spring are best for phenolic (106.32 mg GAE g−1) and flavonoid (73.95 mg QE g−1) respectively. Qualitative identifications revealed differences in secondary metabolite profiles among the different seasons. The study concludes that plant quality governs by the seasons hence; prudential utilisation is possible by collection in right season.