ABSTRACT

Plants are rich in naturally occurring chemical compounds which are the end products of several metabolic pathways. These compounds are referred as phytochemicals (from Greek phyto, meaning plant) . Phytochemicals are primarily synthesized to carry out the physiological functions of plants. Qualitative profiling and quantitative estimation of plant metabolites have become an area of interest for several researchers as these metabolites can be tapped for their therapeutic properties. However, the major challenge is separation and estimation of these phytoconstituents. The traditional screening methods with modern analytical tools can be a solution to this problem. The chapter highlights the significance of high-performance liquid chromatography and high-performance thin-layer chromatography as analytical tools to generate chemoprofiles of plants. The chapter 344illustrates the basic steps such as sample preparation, selection of mobile phase, the significance of derivatization, and data interpretation.