The Use of SEM and Light Microscopy for the Characterization of Hypericum foliosum Aerial Part as a Medicinal Plant

The first step in quality control of herbal drugs is ensuring the correct identification of the plant intended for use. The required analytical procedures (macroscopic characterization of the entire or fragmentized material, microscopic characterization after pulverization of the plant material and chemical characterization), are usually described on quality monographs reported in authoritarian texts such as the European 6th Pharmacopoeia. Further information related to the name of the each herbal drug, the herbal drug definition, purity tests and assay are also provided.