Shatavari is sold at 20%, 40% or 60% saponins, and those figures are gravimetric or colorimetric totals. The marker the research uses, shatavarin IV, is present at well under 1% and is measured by mass spectrometry. Both numbers are legitimate; they are not on the same scale, and a specification that mixes them cannot be met or enforced.
What the Saponins Are
The root of Asparagus racemosus contains steroidal saponins built on a sarsasapogenin core: shatavarins I to X, of which shatavarin IV is the accepted analytical marker, along with asparacoside, asparanin A and others. Validated LC-MS methods show that the saponin glycosides concentrate in the root and vary widely between sources, from undetectable to about 12 mg per gram of dry root, which is why source and assay both matter.
Method 1: Gravimetric Total Saponins
The trade method extracts the powder with a water-alcohol system, separates a butanol or similar saponin-rich fraction, evaporates it and weighs the residue. The result, expressed as total saponins, is fast and gives the 20% to 60% figures of the market. It weighs everything that partitions into that fraction, including sugars, other glycosides and pigments, so it runs high and says nothing about which saponins are present.
Method 2: Colorimetric Total Saponins
A vanillin-sulphuric acid or similar reaction develops a colour with triterpene and steroidal sapogenins that is read by UV-visible spectrophotometry against a reference saponin. It is more specific than gravimetry but still a class reaction, and its reading depends on the reference used, so figures from different laboratories are not directly comparable.
Method 3: Shatavarin IV by HPLC-MS/MS
Because steroidal saponins lack a useful chromophore, HPLC with UV detection is weak for shatavari; the validated approaches use HPLC with tandem mass spectrometry or quadrupole time-of-flight detection, quantifying shatavarin IV and, in the more complete methods, shatavarin IX, shatavarin V, asparacoside and asparanin A. These methods are selective and sensitive, and they read shatavarin IV at fractions of a percent in extracts. They are also expensive and not available in every commercial laboratory, which is why the trade still buys on totals.
Reconciling the Scales
| Gravimetric or UV total saponins | Shatavarin IV by LC-MS/MS | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical figure, 40% grade | 40% | About 0.2% to 1% |
| Confirms identity | No | Yes |
| Detects root vs aerial parts | No | Yes: saponins concentrate in the root |
| Laboratory availability | Universal | Limited; standards required |
What to Specify
- “Total saponins NLT 40% by gravimetry” (or by UV against a named reference) as the commercial grade line.
- “Shatavarin IV reported by LC-MS/MS” on a reference lot, or per lot where the buyer’s market or brand claim requires the marker.
- Root-only material, herb-to-extract ratio, solvent and residual solvent.
- Compare quotations only on the same total-saponin method; a 60% gravimetric and a 40% UV may be the same powder.
The dose consequences are in the shatavari dosage guide; our 40% grade and its published COA are on the product page.
Shatavari Root Extract, 20% to 60% saponins
Gravimetric grades with the method on the COA, shatavarin IV by LC-MS/MS on request, published COA and specification.