Résumé
The saponins of Moroccan Silene vulgaris were extracted from the roots with 10% ethanol and purified using low-pressure liquid chromatography on a reversed phase column. Saponins fractions were characterized by thin layer chromatography and by their high haemolytic activity. Quantitative determination of the saponins by high performance liquid chromatography showed a higher accumulation of these glycosides in the 10-15 mm diameter wide roots (9.4% ± 0.5 saponins per dry wt) than in the 2-5 mm diameter wide roots (8.6% ± 0.5 saponins per dry wt). The high content of saponins in the roots of S. vulgaris from Morocco could justify the use of this plant as a raw material for the extraction of haemolytic saponins.