Post-harvest storage studies in T. arjuna bark powder

Abstract

Terminalia arjuna is a deciduous and evergreen tree belonging to Combretaceae family. The bark leaves and fruits of T. arjuna have been used in indigenous system of medicine for different ailments such as cardio tonic, antidysentric, urinary astringent, expectorant, lithontriptic, fractures, ulcers, anaemia, fatigue, bronchitis, tumor, inflammations, wound healing, cirrhosis of liver and hypertension. It is one of the most important ingredient of many Aurvedic formulations used to treat cardiovascular disorder. Vagbhata, a well-known Indian Physician of ancient times has been credited as the first to use this product for heart conditions in the seventh century A.D. Research on T. arjuna has been going on since the 1930s, but studies have provided mixed results. Various bioactive tannins, triterpenoids, terpenoids saponins, flavonoids, flavonoid glycosides have been isolated from the tree. Considering the possible deterioration of active components such as phenols and tannins during storage conditions, the present study was undertaken to evaluate different commonly available packaging materials. It was observed that black polybag followed by HDPE material was superior over other tested materials for storing the T. arjuna bark powder.