Ethnomedicinal Uses and Phytochemical Concentration of Bergenia ciliata (Haw.) Sternb. from Three Districts in Bhutan

Abstract

Bergenia ciliata (Haw.) Sternb., which is commonly known as elephant ears, is a perennial herb in the Saxifragaceae family. It is traditionally used in ethnomedicine to treat kidney stones, lung disorders, and gastrointestinal illnesses due to its rich secondary metabolites. This study documented twelve medicinal uses of B. ciliata through semi-structured interviews of 67 informants, using a snowball sampling technique across three study sites. Phytochemical analysis showed a significant difference (p ≤ 0.001) in tannic, phenolic, and flavonoid content across the study sites. Tannin content was highest in samples collected from Chapcha (0.77 ± 0.08 µg/ml), phenolic from Chendebji (2.85 ± 0.19 µg/ml), and flavonoid from Patshaling (340 ± 94.82 µg/ml). There were no significant differences in the concentrations of catechin, gallic acid, and bergenin. The highest catechin content was found in samples from Chendebji (29.85 ± 4.09 %), the gallic acid concentration was highest from Patshaling (17.67 ± 7.88 %), and Chapcha samples showed the highest bergenin concentration (196.0 ± 19.63 mg/kg). In general, the concentration of most of the phytochemicals was found lower than from other studies in the region which could be due to the differences in the extraction method, stage of maturity of the rhizomes, and the harvesting time apart from the environmental impact. This study suggests that further research on the phytochemical analysis of Bergenia is necessary, as it has not been previously explored in Bhutan. Additionally, documenting its uses from other regions of Bhutan is equally important.