Analysis of the Elemental Composition of Individual Species Sedum (Rhodiola) spp. and Orthilia secunda
Authors: Terninko I. I. , Lezina A. V. , Generalova Yu. E. , Romanova M. A. 
Published: February 2022

Introduction. Orthilia secunda (L.) House, Sedum quadrifidum Pall., Rhodiola heterodonta (Hook. f. & Thomson) Boriss. are actively used in folk medicine for the treatment of gynecological pathologies, however, the raw materials of these species are registered as dietary supplements, since there are no data from complex phytochemical analysis and standardization criteria. Since macro- and microelements are of great importance for the therapy and prevention of gynecological diseases, the determination of the elemental composition of medicinal plant raw materials is an important stage in a comprehensive phytochemical research of these plants with the purpose of introducing them into official medicine.

Aim. Analysis of the macro- and microelement composition of the rhizomes and roots of Sedum quadrifidum, Rhodiola heterodonta in comparison with Sedum roseum and analysis of the mineral composition of the herb Orthilia secunda from three harvesting sites.

Materials and methods. For research purposes, the grass of Orthilia secunda (L.) House was harvested in three phytocenotic zones – the southern part of Kazakhstan (July 2018), the Tyumen region (harvesting July-August 2019) and the Perm region (July 2019). Rhizomes and roots of Sedum rosea were harvested in the SPCPU in the village Lembolovo, Leningrad region (2019). Medicinal plant raw material of Sedum quadrifidum was purchased in a pharmacy chain in St. Petersburg, the place and time of procurement according to the information on the package is Altai, March 2019. Rhodiola heterodonta was harvested in Tajikistan (March 2018). The analysis was carried out by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (AES) on an Optima 8000 spectrometer (Perkin Elmer, USA) with preliminary sample preparation by the wet mineralization method in accordance with the recommendations of the State Foundation of the Russian Federation XIV OFS1.2.1.1.0004.15 and OFS 1.5. 3.0009.15 on the basis of the Center for Collective Use "Analytical Center". Statistical processing of the results was carried out using the Microsoft Excel program according to GM.1.1.0013.15.

Results and discussion. According to the results of the experiment, it was found that Sedum quadrifidum contains a greater amount of sodium, iron, aluminum, and manganese in comparison with other types of Rhodiols, and the content of manganese is 3 times higher than in the Sedum rosea, and 4.9 times more than in the Rhodiola heterodonta. Rhodiola heterodonta is distinguished by a high content of calcium, potassium, and magnesium. The results of studying the elemental composition of Orthilia herb showed that the harvesting region does not significantly affect the mineral profile of the plant. However, in Orthilia secunda (L.) House harvested in Kazakhstan, a high content of barium is noted, iron, magnesium, manganese, and zinc also slightly prevail, which may be associated with technogenic soil pollution in this region. A significant content of manganese was noted in the herb of orthilia (1801.50 mg/kg), which is higher than in the raw material of rhodiola, which belongs to manganophiles. This makes it possible to classify ortilia as a plant that selectively accumulates manganese, and to position it as an indicator of soils rich in salts of this element. The results of statistical processing made it possible to establish the confidence interval of the mean value, which characterizes the uncertainty of the analysis results and the RSD, which characterizes the precision of the results obtained.

Conclusion. Sedum quadrifidum accumulates the maximum numberof elements in comparison with Sedum roseum. Barium and strontium are the major microelements of the Rhodiola. Sedum quadrifidum is marketed as a manganophil. In the herb of Orthilia, manganese is significantly prevalent, which makes it possible to classify Orthilia as a manganophilous species. The total content of copper, iron, zinc and calcium in the raw material of Rhodiola heterodonta and Orthilia secunda herb confirms the prospects for the development of phytopreparations based on these species of raw materials for the treatment and prevention of gynecological pathologies.