Quality control evaluation and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of Galanthus woronowii Losinsk

Aerial and underground parts ofGalanthus woronowiiLosinsk., a wild growingspecies in north-eastern Anatolia, were collected during flowering period. Quality controland acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity determinations were carried out on Bulbus andHerba Galanthi prepared from plants collected from two different localities. In the context ofquality control studies, contents of humidity, total ash, sulphated ash, acid-insoluble ash and total alkaloids of the drug specimens were determined and found to range between8.463-9.343 %, 6.950-14.947 %, 9.743-17.930 %, 1.102-3.565 % and 0.247-0.499 %, respectively. Additionally, acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of the alkaloidal extracts prepared fromthe drug specimens were determined by using Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) combined with a bioautographic assay based onin vitro Ellman method. All of the alkaloidal extractsdisplayed acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity