Big sagebrush ( Artemisia tridentata) is a common shrub growing in the cold intermountain regions of western North America. The plant is an important food source for herbivores and was used in Native American traditional medicine. In this work, the essential oils were obtained from 3 individuals of A tridentata subsp. tridentata growing in southwestern Idaho. The essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatographic methods including chiral gas chromatography. The major components in the essential oils were yomogi alcohol (5.8%-30.8%), santolina epoxide (1.7%-10.5%), camphor (5.2%-20.1%), and ( Z)-tagetone (0.9%-8.9%). ( + )-α-Pinene, ( + )-β-pinene, ( + )-verbenone, ( − )-( E)-β-caryophyllene, and ( − )-δ-cadinene were the only enantiomers observed for these compounds. Camphene and camphor, on the other hand, showed wide variability in enantiomeric distribution. The enantiomeric distributions in A tridentata subsp. tridentata differ widely compared to other Artemisia species. There are large variations in the chemical compositions in A tridentata, both between subspecies and within subspecies.
Pinus species are important in traditional medicine throughout their ranges, and pine essential oils are of interest in aromatherapy and as topical treatments. In this work, the leaf (needle) essential oils of Pinus ponderosa var. ponderosa and Pinus contorta subsp. contorta from Oregon and Pinus flexilis growing in Idaho, have been obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatographic techniques. The leaf essential oil of P. ponderosa was dominated by β-pinene (21.5–55.3%), methyl chavicol (8.5–41.5%), α-pinene (3.6–9.6%), δ-3-carene (3.6–6.2%), and α-terpineol (1.4–5.3%). The major components of P. contorta essential oil were β-phellandrene (23.8%), terpinen-4-ol (11.0%). The essential oil of P. flexilis was dominated by α-pinene (37.1%), β-pinene (21.9%), bornyl acetate (12.8%), and camphene (8.5%). Chiral gas chromatography revealed the enantiomeric ratios of α-pinene and limonene to be variable, but (−)-β-pinene predominated in Pinus essential oils.
Conifers are of great economic value in terms of lumber production, important for construction and other uses such as pulp and paper. They are also important sources of essential oils. Conifer species have been vital to the ethnobotany and traditional herbal medicine of many different Native American groups. The objective of this work was to obtain and analyze the essential oils of several conifer species (Abies lasiocarpa, Picea engelmannii, Pinus contorta, Pseudotsuga menziesii, and Thuja plicata) growing in Idaho. The foliar essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation and then analyzed by gas chromatographic methods, including GC-MS, GC-FID, and chiral GC-MS. The essential oils were obtained in varying yields from 0.66% up to 4.70%. The essential oil compositions were largely dominated by monoterpene hydrocarbons and oxygenated monoterpenoids. The chiral monoterpenoids were generally rich in the (−)-enantiomers for members of the Pinaceae, but the (+)-enantiomers predominated in the Cupressaceae. The essential oil compositions obtained in this work are qualitatively similar, but quantitatively different, to previously reported compositions and confirm and complement the previous reports. However, this is the first comprehensive analysis of the chiral terpenoid components in these conifer species. Additional research on essential oils of the Pinaceae and Cupressaceae is needed to describe the chemical profiles, chemical compositions, and enantiomeric distributions more reliably in the various species and infraspecific taxa of these two families.
Background/Objective: Big sagebrush ( Artemisia tridentata Nutt., Asteraceae) is a conspicuous shrub growing in arid and semi-arid regions of intermountain western North America, from eastern Washington and Oregon, through Nevada, Idaho, and Utah, into northern Arizona and New Mexico, and east as far as the western Dakotas, and Colorado. At least three subspecies of A. tridentata have been recognized, including A. tridentata subsp. tridentata Nutt. (basin big sagebrush), A. tridentata subsp. wyomingensis Beetle & A.L.Young (Wyoming big sagebrush), and A. tridentata subsp. vaseyana (Rydb.) Beetle (mountain big sagebrush). Although big sagebrush is an important food source and cover for several animal species, the volatile phytochemistry has shown wide variation in composition. The purpose of this work was to compare and contrast the essential oil compositions of the three subspecies of A. tridentata growing in southwestern Idaho. Methods/Results: Several samples of A. tridentata subsp. wyomingensis and A. tridentata subsp. vaseyana were collected, the essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation using a Likens-Nickerson apparatus in yields of 2.33%-4.45% and 0.90%-1.73%, respectively, and the essential oils analyzed by gas chromatographic techniques. Although A. tridentata shows wide variation in essential oil compositions, multivariate analysis (hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis) indicated A. tridentata subsp. tridentata to be characterized by high concentrations of yomogi alcohol (5.8%-30.8%) and camphor (5.2%-20.1%), while camphor was the defining component in A. tridentata subsp. wyomingensis (10.0%-30.1%) and subsp. vaseyana (16.1%-40.2%). One sample of A. tridentata subsp. vaseyana was dominated by α-thujone (76.1%), however. Conclusion: There is much variation in essential oil compositions of A. tridentata, both within subspecies and between geographical locations; much additional investigation is necessary to more fully characterize the volatile phytochemistry of this plant.
Members of the Abies genus (Pinaceae) have been used in traditional medicines in their natural ranges, and essential oils derived from Abies species have found use in aromatic therapy. In this work, the foliar (leaves and twigs) essential oil of Abies concolor have been obtained from mature trees growing in southwestern Idaho and analyzed using gas chromatographic techniques. The essential oils were rich in α-pinene (15.2-20.5%), camphene (7.5-10.2%), β-pinene (24.2-25.6%), δ-3-carene (5.5-6.5%), limonene (5.4-6.9%), and bornyl acetate (14.6-22.1%). The dominant enantiomers for the major terpenoids were (+)-α-pinene, (–)-camphene, (–)-β-pinene, (+)-δ-3-carene, (–)-limonene, and (–)-bornyl acetate. The essential oil compositions are qualitatively similar to other Abies species, but the enantiomeric distributions for α-pinene, β-pinene, and camphene did reveal notable variation between Abies essential oils.
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