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International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences Research Article
Anti-inflammatory potential evaluation of Clitoria ternatea through metabolite profiling based on Indian traditional knowledge
Shikha Verma and Eshita Pandey
Year : 2026 | Volume: 11 | Issue: 5 | Pages: 44-55
Received on: 03/06/2026
Revised on: 22/06/2026
Accepted on: 06/08/2026
Published on: 01/09/2026
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Shikha Verma and Eshita Pandey( 2026).
Anti-inflammatory potential evaluation of Clitoria ternatea through metabolite profiling based on Indian traditional knowledge
. International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences, 11( 5), 44-55.
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Abstract
Indian Traditional Knowledge is a storehouse of medicinal plants which can be used to treat various acute and chronic diseases. Clitoria ternatea L. (Fabaceae) the butterfly pea, a well-known medicinal plant in Ayurvedic medicine falls under the category of Medhya Rasayana due to its cognitive-enhancing, antioxidant and neuroprotective properties. The current study systematically analyses the phytochemical constituents of an acidified hydroalcoholic extract of Clitoria ternatea flowers by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). Dried flower samples were extracted and the extract was analysed using a mass spectrometer in positive and negative ion modes. The metabolite profile was identified which allowed the identification of 60 metabolites, including flavonoids, isoflavones, phenolic acids, lignans, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. The metabolite profile was dominated by stable C-glycosyl flavonoids isovitexin, isoorientin, isoflavones (genistein), and phenolic acids including sinapic acid. These compounds have established therapeutic effects as they are anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, anticancer and neuroprotective in nature. Anthocyanin content of Clitoria ternatea flowers is well documented but there is a lack of comprehensive metabolomic analysis of the hydroalcoholic extracts which are much closer to traditional tinctures. The present study determines the metabolic profiling of Clitoria ternatea flowers and provides strong phytochemical evidence supporting the pharmacological relevance of hydroalcoholic formulations. The results strengthen the potential of the flower as a source of functional compounds which can help reduce inflammation and act as a nutraceutical and a phytopharmaceutical.
Keywords
Clitoria ternatea, LC-ESI-MS/MS, Hydroalcoholic extraction, Flavonoids, Metabolomics.
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© The Author(s) 2026. This article is published by International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (creativecommons.org), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
