Quantitative characteristics of microdiagnostic features of the herb of Astragalus varius S.G. Gmel.

Introduction. Astragalus varius S.G. Gmel. is a species from the large genus Astragalus L. (Fabaceae), the herb of which contains flavonoids, saponins, vitamins, phenolic carboxylic acids, triterpene saponins and other compounds. Extracts from the herb have antioxidant, antimicrobial and diuretic properties. Microdiagnostic features of the herb of A. varius have been studied previously, but their quantitative characteristics are missing.

Aim. Determination of morphometric characteristics of microdiagnostic features of the herb A. varius.

Materials and methods. The analyzed object of the study was the herb of A. varius S.G. Gmel., harvested in July 2023 in different areas of the Saratov region. Macro- and microscopic analysis was performed using a Mikromed MS-1 stereomicroscope (China), a ZEISS Plan-Apochromat microscope (Germany) in accordance with the requirements of OFS.1.5.3.0003 «Technique of microscopic and microchemical study of medicinal plant materials and medicinal herbal preparations» of the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation, XV edition. Microphotographs were edited using Photoscape 3.7. Morphometry was performed using a ZEISS Plan-Apochromat microscope (Germany). The unit of measurement was a micrometer. For each structure, 10 measurements were performed (n = 10). Statistical processing of the obtained data was carried out in Excel (ver. 2016, Microsoft, USA). The data in the tables are presented as mean values with standard deviation.

Results and discussion. As a result of the conducted studies, it was established that the macro- and microdiagnostic features of the analyzed species correspond to our description presented earlier. For the first time, morphometric characteristics of the microdiagnostic features of the herb of A. varius (length and width of epidermal cells, diameter of the stomata of the leaf, stem, calyx and corolla; length and width of T-shaped hairs; ratio of the shoulders of T-shaped hairs) were established.

Conclusion. Quantitative characteristics of microdiagnostic features of the herb of A. varius have been identified. The results of experimental studies complement the data of scientific literature and can be used to confirm the authenticity of this type of raw material.

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