Botanical ingredient identification and quality assessment: strengths and limitations of analytical techniques

Interest in botanical medicines is increasing worldwide with current global market values estimated to be greater than US $72 billion. To ensure ingredients used in botanical preparations are appropriately identified and will deliver the intended benefit while minimizing potential for risk, good manufacturing practices (GMPs) are required. GMPs require that scientifically valid analytical techniques be used. This review discusses a variety of techniques of quality assessment taking into account the different challenges between academicians and manufacturers with the basic premise that all techniques are scientifically valid if used appropriately, and conversely, are limited if not used in a scientifically valid manner. The strengths and limitations, applications and inapplicability, of some of these techniques will be discussed, as will differences between traditional and more modern analytical techniques. A strong emphasis is placed on classical botanical and traditional macromorphological assessment techniques that represent the basis of identification and quality assessment upstream of other techniques such as analytical chemistry and genetics. It will be shown that it is the suite of botanical and chemical techniques that provides the greatest confidence for ensuring the identity and quality of botanical medicines.