Athar Parvez Ansari - Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Chennai (NABH Accredited), New Delhi, India.
Mary Shamya Arokiarajan - Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Chennai (NABH Accredited), New Delhi, India.
Wasim Akram Syed Akbar - Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Chennai (NABH Accredited), New Delhi, India.
N Zaheer Ahmed - Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine, Ministry of Ayush, Government of India, New Delhi, India.
Noman Anwar - Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Chennai (NABH Accredited), New Delhi, India.

Background: The global promotion of herbal products is not at par due to a lack of quality control studies. Marham-i-Raal, a pharmacopoeial ointment, treats various types of ulcers and wounds. The present study evaluates the quality control, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties of Marham-i-Raal. Methods: The quality control parameters, including loss of weight on drying, pH, total ash value, acid-insoluble ash value, heavy metal analysis, microbial load, and high-performance thin-layer chromatography of Marham-i-Raal, were carried out. Moreover, the antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of Marham-i-Raal were also investigated.  Results: The quality control findings of Marham-i-Raal, including weight loss on drying, pH, total ash value, acid-insoluble ash value, heavy metal analysis, and microbial load, were found within the normal limits. The antimicrobial study of Marham-i-Raal has shown promising effects against gram-positive bacteria and Candida albicans. The antioxidant effects of the test drug were also found to be significant at higher concentrations against ۲,۲-diphenyl-۱-picrylhydrazyl and ۲,۲’-azino-bis-(۳-ethylbenzothiazoline-۶-sulfonic) acid methods.  Conclusion: The standards developed for the quality control of Marham-i-Raal may be referred to in the future for further studies. This important Unani ointment may be clinically used to treat non-healing ulcers and wounds.

Marham-i-Raal, Unani ointment, Quality control, HPTLC, Antimicrobial, Antioxidant