Evaluation of the Physicochemical and Micromeritic Properties of Exudate Gum of Cussonia arborea Stem Bark in Conventional Tablet Formulation

Table 3

Phytochemical screening of purified gums.

Chemical test	Observation	Inference
Ruthenium red	Pink colour	Plant gum/mucilage
Molisch’s reagent	Purple colour at the interface	Carbohydrate present
Iodine 0.2N solution	No colour change	Starch absent
Lead acetate dilute solution	No visible precipitate	Tannins absent
Ferric chloride solution	Brown precipitate	Tannins absent
Benedict’s solution	Brick red ppt	Reducing sugar present
Froth test	Froth was present and disappeared after the addition of two drops of olive oil	Saponins absent
Ninhydrin (0.2%w/v) solution	No visible colour change	Free amino acids absent
Biuret test	No visible colour change	Protein absent
Dragendorff reagent	No precipitate formed	Alkaloids absent
NaOH (10%w/v) solution	No visible colour change	Flavonoids absent
Ferric chloride (5%w/v) solution	No visible colour change	Flavonoids absent
Bromine water	No precipitate formed	Glycosides absent
Keller–Kiliani test	No clear layer and colour change	Cardiac glycosides absent
Salkowski’s test	Colourless layer on top of black layer	Terpenoid absent
Ethanol and conc. H2SO4 test	Black solution	Steroids absent