Metals, amino acids and carbohydrate contents of medicinally important plant - Mimusops elengi

Mimusops elengi is a medicinal plant. Different uses of it are mentioned in ayurveda. It has profound effect in inflammation and bleeding of gums. It is antipyretic and increases fertility in women. The bark of the plant is astringent. It is used as tonic and febrifuge. Because of the medicinal importance it is essential to know its metal content, the presence of amino acids and carbohydrates. Taking this into consideration preliminary chemical analysis for the investigation of metal contents of the bark has been carried out. The presence of carbohydrates and amino acids are detected by using paper chromatography. The investigation showed the presence of six amino acids. The sugars detected are maltose, xylose, fructose, arabinose and dextrose. Detection of metal content showed interestingly higher percentage of calcium.