Significance of molecular markers in pharmacognosy: A modern tool for authentication of herbal drugs

Quality evaluation of herbal preparation is an elementary requirement of industry and other association dealing with Ayurvedic and herbal products. The growing use of botanical products now a days is forcing to assess these agents and to develop standards of quality and produce. An attempt has been made through this article to highlight the use of molecular markers for botanicals with special reference to Indian herbal medicine. As the desire for herbal-based products becomes ingrained in our society but standardization of botanicals offers many obstacles like the controversial identity of various plants, deliberated adulteration of plant material, ensuring quality is much more than discovery, specification, and process control. It also includes awareness of every aspect of a manufacturing process from research to shipping. Extensive research on DNA-based molecular markers is in progress for its great utility in the herbal drug analysis and widely used for the authentification of plant species of medicinal importance. DNA markers are reliable for information as the genetic composition is unique for each species and is not affected by age, physiological conditions, as well as environmental factors. DNA markers offer several advantages over conventional phenotypic markers, as they provide data that can be analyzed objectively.