สารบัญ

        Star Flower is the dried flower, predominantly corolla and stamen, of Mimusops elengi L. (Family Sapotaceae), Herbarium Specimen Number:  DMSC 5161, Crude Drug Number:  DMSc 0896.

Constituents  Star Flower contains volatile oil, of which 2-phenylethanol is its major constituent.  It also contains β-sitosterol, flavonoids, etc.

Description of the plant  (Figs. 1a, 1b)  Tree up to 20 m tall, crown dense, round and spreading; bark dark grey to dark brown, cracked or longitudinally fissured; young twig pubescent, brownish.  Leaves simple, spirally arranged, ovate or elliptic, 4 to 15 cm long, 2 to 7.5 cm wide, apex shortly acuminate, base cuneate or round, margin undulate, upper surface dark green and shining, lower surface paler; petiole 1.5 to 3.5 cm long, pubescent. Flower(s) white or greenish white, fragrant, 1 to 6 in axil; peduncle 1 to 1.5 cm long, pubescent, brownish; sepals 8, arranged in 2 whorls of 4, outer ones greenish brown, ovate-lanceolate,  7 to 8 mm long, about 4 mm wide, pubescent, inner ones lighter, lanceolate, 7 to 8 mm long, 2.5 to 3 mm wide; corolla tube about 2 mm long, corolla lobes 8, lanceolate, 7 to 8 mm long, about 2 mm wide, each lobe with 2 dorsal petaloid appendages of the same shape and size  as the corolla lobes; stamens 8, inserted at the top of corolla tube; staminodes 8, pubescent, alternating with the stamens; ovary superior, ovoid, 2 to 4.5 mm long, 2.5 to 3 mm wide, pubescent, style 7 to 8 mm long.  Fruit berry, ovoid to ellipsoid, 1.5 to 3 cm long, 1 to 3 cm wide, glabrous, green when young and orange to red when ripe.  Seed(s) mostly 1 or 2, ellipsoid to oblong, about 1.7 cm long, about 1 cm wide, dark brown. 

Description  Odour, strong and fragrant.

          Macroscopical  (Fig. 1a)  Predominantly corolla and stamens, pale brown to brown; sepals arranged in 2 whorls, ovate-lanceolate, with brown hairs; corolla lobes and dorsal petaloid appendages lanceolate; stamens enclosed within corolla lobes.

           Microscopical  (Figs. 2a, 2b, 2c)  Transverse section of the flower through the calyx, corolla and petaloid appendage shows upper epidermis, a layer of rectangular cells in the sepal and a layer of papillae with striation in the petal and the petaloid appendage; trichomes, T- and shaggy-shaped unicellular cells, containing oleoresin, numerous in calyx and a few in corolla; mesophyll composed of round parenchyma cells some of which contain oleoresin; vascular bundle, collateral, with phloem and xylem; vessel, spiral.  Lower epidermis, similar to those of upper epidermis.

           Longitudinal section of the central part of a young flower shows sepals, petals, stamens, ovary, style, and stigma.

            Star Flower in powder possesses the diagnostic microscopical characters of the unground drug.

Additional information  It is commonly used with other herbal drugs in Thai traditional herbal preparations.

Packaging and storage  Star Flower shall be kept in well-closed containers, protected from light, and stored in a dry place.

Identification

     A. Extract 2.5 g of the sample, in powder, with 10 mL of methanol, shake occasionally for about 20 minutes and filter (solution 1).  To 1 mL of solution 1, add 1 or 2 pieces of magnesium ribbon, shake well and mix with 2 or 3 drops of hydrochloric acid: a pink colour is produced.
     B. To 1 mL of solution 1, add 10 mg of zinc powder and 2 or 3 drops of hydrochloric acid: an orange colour develops.
     C. Carry out the test as described in the “Thin-Layer Chromatography” (Appendix 3.1), using silica gel GF254 as the coating substance and a mixture of 60 volumes of ethyl acetate and 40 volumes of toluene as the mobile phase and allowing the solvent front to ascend 10 cm above the line of application.  Apply to the plate as a band of 5 mm, 30 μL of the test solution prepared by shaking vigorously 100 mg of the sample, in No. 425 powder, with 1 mL of methanol for 15 minutes, allowing to stand overnight, centrifuging for 5 minutes, and using the clear supernatant.  After removal of the plate, allow it to dry in air and examine the plate under ultraviolet light (366 nm) through the cut-off filter; two blue fluorescent bands are observed. Spray the plate with a 2 per cent w/v solution of vanillin in methanol.  Subsequently spray the plate with a 10 per cent v/v solution of sulfuric acid in methanol and heat at 120° for 10 minutes; several bands of different colours appear (Table 1); see also Fig. 3.

Loss on drying  Not more than 16.0 per cent w/w after drying at 105° to constant weight (Appendix 4.15).

Foreign matter  Not more than 5.0 per cent w/w (Appendix 7.2).

Acid-insoluble ash  Not more than 3.0 per cent w/w (Appendix 7.6).

Total ash  Not more than 7.0 per cent w/w (Appendix 7.7).

Ethanol-soluble extractive  Not less than 8.0 per cent w/w (Appendix 7.12).