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The steroid content of Conium maculatum L. (Poison Hemlock), Apiaceae, a well-known weed plant species, was studied herein for the first time. This was achieved by detailed GC-MS analyses of twenty two samples (dichloromethane extracts of different plant organs of C. maculatum at three or four different stages of phenological development, collected from three locations). In total, twenty four different steroids were identified. Six steroids had an ergostane nucleus while the other ones possessed a stigmastane carbon framework. The identity of these compounds was determined by spectral means (MS fragmentation), GC co-injections with authentic standards and chemical transformation (silylation). Steroid compounds were noted to be the main chemical constituents of root extracts (up to 70 %) of this plant species in the last phase of development. The predominant ones were stigmasta-5,22- dien-3β-ol (stigmasterol) and stigmasta-5-en-3β-ol (β-sitosterol). In an attempt to classify the samples, principal component analysis (PCA) and agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC) were performed using steroid percentages as variables

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The essential oils of two Glechoma species from Serbia have been analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Eighty eight and two hundred thirty eight constituents identified accounted for 90.6 and 86.6% of the total oils of G. hirsuta Waldst. & Kit. and G. hederacea L., respectively. In both oils the dominant constituent class was the terpenoid one, 75.7% in G. hirsuta and 47.4% in G. hederacea. 1,8-Cineole (42.6%) and spathulenol (7.4%) were the main constituents of G. hirsuta oil while palmitic (13.3%) and linoleic acids (9.3%) alongside with germacrene D (7.3%) were the major ones of G. hederacea oil. The relative percentage of the sesquiterpene fraction (19.5%) and fatty acid derived compounds (7.6%) distinguished nicely G. hirsuta from G. hederacea. Additionally, oxygenated sesquiterpenes (16.9%) dominated the oil of G. hirsuta, while the reversed situation was noted for G. hederacea oil (the hydrocarbon sesquiterpenes amounted to only 2.6%). The results obtained provide a rationale for the parallel ethnopharmacological usage of G. hirsuta and G. hederacea. This is the first report on the composition of G. hirsuta oil. KEY WORDS KEY WORDS KEY WORDS

Volatile constituents from two fresh samples of the subendemic Geocaryum cynapioides (Guss.) L. Engstrand (Apiaceae) obtained by hydrodistillation were analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Forty four and one hundred-twenty three constituents identified in the oils accounted for 98.7 % and 98.4 % of the total oils, respectively. The major component of both oils was (E)-β-farnesene (73.3 % and 57.7 %) while the other major contributors were: (E,E)-α-farnesene (4.8 % and 14.6 %) and trans-sesquisabinene hydrate (12.2 % and 3.0 %). The constituents endo-fenchyl acetate, and three sesquiterpene lactones belonging to the selinane (callitrisin) and guaiane (grilactone and jalcaguaianolide) series, with a rather restricted natural occurrence, were present in only one of the samples (4.7 %, trace amount, 0.1 %, 0.5 %, respectively) and completely absent from the other distinguishing so the two samples. A chemotaxonomic discussion of the results is presented.