Abstarct
Nature in general, has yielded most common bioactive substances .The plant kingdom contributes in a more meaningful way to supply the useful substances for the treatment of human diseases. Nigella sativa is an annual herbaceous, flowering plant cultivated for its seeds and is classified as an edible part .The developing countries mostly rely on traditional medicines involves the use of different plant extracts or the bioactive constituents. To identify the major bioactive compounds, Soxhlet extraction procedure was employed with modified steps from previously adopted procedures. The present study was carried out to analyze the preliminary phytochemical screening for principle bioactive compounds in methanol, petroleum ether and n-hexane extracts of Nigella sativa (Black seed).The extracts were subjected to preliminary phytochemical analysis which reveals the presence of flavonoids, terpenoids, saponins and glycosides. The identification of bioactive compounds in plants, their isolation, purification and characterization of active ingredients in crude extracts by various analytical methods is important.  Phytoconstituents obtained from the natural sources play a very important role for their utilization as therapeutically active constituents in modern medicine. Approximately one quarter drugs contain plant extracts or active ingredients obtained from plant substances. Phytochemical analysis of black seeds will support in the recent era for their therapeutic potential. The intrests in functional foods enriched with bioactive compounds like phenolic compounds, terpenoids etc. The reported bioactive compounds that typically occour in small quantities in medicinal plants may serve as extra nutritional constituents. Hence, need to intensively studied and evaluated for dietry recommendations and potential therapeutic applications.
