Botanical and pharmacognostic investigation of Strobilanthes kalimantanensis

Under a hidden waterfall in the interior of the tropical rainforest of East Kalimantan, a new medicinal plant that produces essential oil (EO) was found with the name Strobilanthes kalimantanensis. The aim was to investigate the botanical and evaluate the pharmacognostic characteristics of S. kalimantanensis leaves from East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Pharmacognostic studies can provide recommendations for establishing quality control standards or guidelines for cultivating, harvesting, and processing S. kalimantanensis to ensure the consistent and reliable quality of medicinal products. Characteristic methods of S. kalimantanensis leaves include botanical macroscopic, fluorescence, physicochemical, and phytochemical evaluation. The plant characteristics of this plant are similar to S. kunthia and S. reptans but can be differentiated in the leaves and flowers. Fluorescence assay with sodium hydroxide 5% shows unique characteristics of secondary metabolites based on their ability to form dark green with black precipitate in Ultraviolet 365 nm. The physicochemical characteristics showed yield, water content, water-soluble, ethanol soluble, total ash value, and acid-insoluble ash. Phytochemicals showed the presence of alkaloids, polyphenols, terpenoids, and EO containing 23% trans-anethole. This evaluation report details the chemical composition, identity, and safety of S. kalimantanensis leaves.