Evaluation of DNA quality from modified DNA extraction and amplification of ITS2 from eurycoma longifolia capsule herbal products

Abstract

Demand for herbal products has increased because of their purported health benefits and economic value. However, they are susceptible to adulteration, making accurate identification of herbal origin essential, especially for quality control. In recent decades, DNA-based methods have played a crucial role in the development of authentication tools that required good quality of DNA. The manufacturing process of herbal products involved heating, grinding or other mechanical procedures, and addition of excipients/additives caused DNA to degrade which in turn influenced DNA quality. In this study, nine different conventional methods with some modifications were evaluated to determine the best technique producing good quality DNA from capsule herbal products. Assessment was conducted using spectrophotometric measurements and agarose gel electrophoresis. To determine the quality of gDNA, amplification of ITS2 amplicon was performed by PCR. The DNA extraction finding showed that DNA quality from each method resulted in a different DNA purity and yield, hence the ITS2 amplification. Each of the modified DNA extraction methods performed has its own strengths and limitations when it comes to obtaining high quality gDNA. In addition, the study demonstrated the success of ITS2 amplification with the modified DNA extraction methods used.