DNA Barcoding Validation of Medicinal Ipomoea Species from the Morning Glory Family

The growing consumption of herbal products has been accompanied by a concerning increase in the use of adulterants during production, which could affect the quality of traditional herbal medicine. DNA barcoding is a powerful method for accurately identifying plants at various taxonomic levels, and for authenticating medicinal plants. In this study, the DNA barcoding regions rbcL and ITS were used to corroborate the botanical classification of commercial seeds from five Ipomoea species and one hybrid, all commonly used as herbal medicines and widely cultivated as ornamentals. These comprised Ipomoea alba , Ipomoea leptophylla , Ipomoea nil “Scarlet O’Hara,” Ipomoea nil × imperialis , Ipomoea tricolor “Heavenly Blue,” and Ipomoea violacea . It was not possible to differentiate individuals that were sold as different species, i.e., Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea tricolor “Heavenly Blue,” due to the mislabeling of the source material. Our results confirmed that both analyzed commercial seeds belonged to Ipomoea tricolor. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed the effectiveness of the ITS1 and ITS2 markers as DNA barcodes for identifying medicinal species within the genus. DNA barcoding enables precise species identification and supports botanical authenticity. Our findings underscore the importance of taxonomic and analytical accuracy in studying medicinal plants, ensuring that identity assumptions are scientifically sound. DNA barcodes and ethnobotanical genomics can be integrated into regulatory frameworks for quality control of herbal medicines.