Pfaffia glomerata (Spreng.) Pedersen, known as Brazilian ginseng, is a plant extensively used in folk medicine due to its phytotherapic characteristics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of β-ecdysone in the roots and shoots of in vivo and in vitro cultured plants of two sources (BRA and JB-UFSM) of Pfaffia glomerata using Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC). For in vivo cultured plants, TLC plates showed that β-ecdysone was present in the roots and shoots. Sources showed no differences concerning TLC plates. TLC analysis did not detect β-ecdysone in the in vitro cultured plants.
Brazilian ginseng; TLC; ecdysteroids; quality control; in vitro culture