Quality assessment of classically prepared Parangipattai Pathangam

Abstract

Background: Parangipattai Pathangam (PP) is a mercury-based unique traditional therapeutic formulation in the Siddha system of medicine. This potential drug is administered for various ailments, viz. venereal diseases, inflammatory disorders, ulcerations, and skin diseases. The best-expected results of the drug can be drawn only if its quality is maintained. Also, the presence of mercury in the drug is an everyday chaos among the public, hampers this sublimate’s outreach. Objective: The present study emphasizes the standardization of PP using modern analytical techniques. It also addresses the mercuric nontoxicity of this drug with good scientific backing. Materials and Methods: PP is characterized by its physicochemical, spectral, morphological and thermal characteristics. Results: High-performance thin-layer chromatography quantification revealed that the phytochemical constituents are rich in PP. From X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), all the diffraction peaks could be well indexed to that of HgS. This was reiterated in scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-energy-dispersive spectrum (EDS) analysis. SEM showed a particle size of 80 nm. Conclusion: Scrupulously purified raw mercury used during its preparation has been completely converted to less toxic and less adsorbed mercuric sulfide in the final product, making it safe and secure. EDS and XRD suggest that PP has HgS as a principal inorganic constituent. Morphological analysis vide SEM showed that the particles are in a nanometer regime about its better potency.