N. glutinosa L. is a relatively less studied Nicotiana species (Solanaceae), although there are data about its importance as a model plant in viral control studies, as a gene donor in tobacco hybridization and as a source of agents with insecticidal or fungicidal effects. The biological activities of the species were associated mostly with the presence of leaf surface metabolites, in particular diterpenes and sucrose esters. The aim of this study was to identify the chemical composition of the essential oil (EO) and two aromatic extraction products (concrete and resinoid) obtained from N. glutinosa L. leaves. GC-MS analysis identified 26 components in the EO (representing 97.3% of total oil content), which contained mostly diterpene compounds with major components manool (14.2%), sclarene (8.4%) and manoyl oxide (8.1%). The number of compounds identified in the concrete was 37 (95.5% of the total content) and the major component was the diterpene alcohol sclareol (14.2%). In the resinoid, 30 volatile components (representing 95.1% of resinoid content) were identified, with major components nicotine (32.9%), α-tocopherol (8.2%), tridecanoin (6.9%), sclareol (6.9%), and solanone (6.9%). The group of bicyclic diterpenes had the largest share in the diterpene fraction of the products (57.3%, 91.7%, and 86.3%, respectively for the EO, concrete, and resinoid). Considering the abundance of sclareol in the aromatic products, the antimicrobial activity of the pure substance was determined. Sclareol was highly effective against a set of medicinally important yeasts; Candida albicans AТCC 10231, C. glabrata ATCC 90030, C. parapsilosis clinical isolate, and C. tropicalis NBIMCC 23, while being less effective against the studied Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Data from the study on N. glutinosa aromatic products composition may be of interest to the aroma industries for their possible use in perfumery and cosmetics.Molecules 2020, 25, 30 2 of 16 N. glutinosa is native to Northern and Central Peru and Southern Ecuador, where it has adapted well to semi-arid areas, rocky slopes and ditch banks [1,5]. Plants are more fragile and with tender stem than common tobacco (N. tabacum), rarely branching [6]. Leaves are petiolate, heart-shaped; with a maximum length of about 23 cm. Inflorescences are racemose with long peduncles. Unlike N. tabacum, the flowers of N. glutinosa tend to form bilabiate corolla and are deep orange in color with long anthers adhering to the upper lobe of the corolla, as in the bilabiate flowers of other families [6]. N. glutinosa germinates readily and grows well in both a greenhouse and the field [7]. There are three accessions of N. glutinosa, labeled as accessions (acc.) 24, 24A, and 24B [8].Data on the chemical composition of N. glutinosa leaves are generally limited [5], with the exception of those for alkaloids, as well as for sucrose esters, diterpene alcohols and other leaf surface exudate components [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. The major alkaloid in N. glutinosa is nornicotine [16], alth...

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Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) aroma is an important attribute of tobacco quality and is influenced by a variety of minor chemical components, including carotenoid degradation products. The objectives of this work were to determine the content of the most important fragrance-shaping carotenoid degradation products in the essential oils (EOs) of the three types of Bulgarian tobacco—Oriental (OR), flue-cured Virginia (FCV), and Burley (BU)—and to compare them with other aromatic products from tobacco. The content of total carotenoids and β-carotene was highest in BU tobacco (22.23 and 20.34 mg/100 g DW, respectively), followed by OR (13.60 and 12.09 mg/100 g DW in variety “Plovdiv 7” (Pd7); 6.27 and 5.45 mg/100 g DW in “Krumovgrad” (Kr), and FCV (5.93 and 3.73 mg/100 g DW). EOs were obtained by hydrodistillation in an acidified medium, and the main aroma-impact compounds from carotenoid degradation (identified by GC-MS) were as follows: FCV-α-ionone (0.61 mg/100 g DW), dihydro-β-ionone (0.96 mg/100 g DW), β-damascenone (1.26 mg/100 g DW); BU-α-ionone (0.73 mg/100 g DW), dihydro-β-ionone (1.19 mg/100 g DW), β-damascenone (1.35 mg/100 g DW); OR(Kr)-α-ionone (0.20 mg/100 g DW), β-ionone (1.08 mg/100 g DW), dihydro-β-ionone (1.34 mg/100 g DW), β-damascenone (0.36 mg/100 g DW); OR(Pd7)-α-ionone (1.43 mg/100 g DW), dihydro-β-ionone (1.73 mg/100 g DW), β-damascenone (1.23 mg/100 g DW). Ionone and its derivatives were not identified in the aroma extraction products concrete, resinoid, or absolute. The results suggest that temperature, pH of the medium, process duration, and possibly other unknown factors affect carotenoid transformation. The study provides insight into the composition of tobacco EOs and may be of interest to the fragrance industry.

Nicotiana rustica L. (Aztec tobacco) is the only Nicotiana species, except common tobacco (N. tabacum L.), which is cultivated for tabacco products. The leaves of N. rustica, however, accumulate various specialized metabolites of potential interest. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate certain classes of metabolites (by HPLC and GC-MS) in the leaves, the essential oil (EO), concrete and resinoid of N. rustica. Three pentacyclic triterpenes were identified in the leaves (by HPLC): betulin (252.78 µg g-1), betulinic (182.53 µg g-1) and oleanolic  (69.44 µg g-1) acids. The dominant free phenolic acids in the leaves (by HPLC) were rosmarinic (4257.38 µg g-1) and chlorogenic (1714.40 µg g-1), and conjugated forms of vanillic (3445.71 µg g-1), sinapic (1963.11 µg g-1), and syringic (1784.96 µg g-1). The major flavonoids in the leaves were luteolin (960.44 µg g-1), apigenin (880.66 µg g-1) and hyperosid (780.72 µg g-1). The GS-MS profiling of the EO identified 19 components and the major ones were phytol (43.68 %), solanone (5.54 %), cis-5-butyl-4-methyldihydrofuran-2(3H)-one (5.23 %), dihydro-β-ionone (4.25 %), α-ionene (3.54 %),and β-damascenone (3.03 %). The major volatiles in the concrete were  isoamyl alcohol (28.82 %), oxynicotine (9.02 %), phytol (7.80 %), 4-mеthyl-1-penthanol (6.33 %), cotinine (5.55 %) and 3-metyl-3-penthanol (4.09 %). Resinoid composition was dominant by nicotine (39.75 %), phytol (11.23 %), eicosane (4.88 %), diethyl phthalate (4.19 %), dibutyl phthalate (3.48 %) and solanone (3.27 %). Concrete and resinoid showed weak antibacterial activity . These results create grounds for considering N. rustica as a source to obtain aroma or other bioproducts.

Physalis peruviana L. fruit (Cape gooseberry, CG) is a rich source of phytonutrients, including vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, polyunsaturated fatty acids (FAs), phytosterols, dietetic fibers, and others. The popularity and production areas of CG have been expanding worldwide, thus producing fruit with origin-substantiated differences in their nutrient composition.This study was based on the comparative assessment of 2 genotypes of CG produced in Bulgaria (CG-P and CG-F), through analysis of the lipid fraction of different fruit elements (seeds, peels), and further examination of the extracted seedcakes. The CG seeds reasonably yielded more oil (17.0%–22.2%) than the isolated peels (2.8%–2.9%). The main FAs in the CG-P seed oil were oleic (29.6%) and palmitic (20.6%), and in the CG-F seed oil were palmitic (20.9%) and stearic (17.5%). Both CG peel oils were dominated by palmitic acid (43.0%–60.2%), but there was a significant variation of some other FAs. The group of bioactive tocopherols was found exclusively in the oil extracted from the CG seeds, with no significant difference between the genotypes; β-tocopherol and δ-tocopherol were the most abundant. Waste from the oil extraction (the seedcakes) was found to contain high levels of macro and microminerals (K, Mg, Cu, Zn, Mn, and others), fiber (40.26%–47.62%), protein (13.73%–8.08%), and essential amino acids, with some genotype-based variations. The results demonstrated that, concerning the studied aspects of fruit composition, CG produced in Bulgaria was comparable to the fruit of other origins; hence, they might be of practical interest to national agricultural and food producers, as well as to the food industry on a wider basis, as new details are added to the knowledge about CG fruit. The outcomes from the examination of the CG seedcakes were in favor of their potential in human and animal nutrition, and might serve as grounds for the development of new products.

The consumption of Cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.) fruit (CG), fresh or processed, is gaining popularity worldwide, due to its nutritional and medicinal benefits. This study was based on the analysis of the lipid fraction of different parts of CG fruit and on further valorization of the resulting CG waste. The content of glyceride oil in CG seeds, peels and seed/peel waste, as well as the individual fatty acid, sterol and tocopherol composition of the oils was determined. CG seeds and seed/peel waste were a rich source of oil (up to 22.93%), which is suitable for nutritional application, due to its high proportions of unsaturated fatty acids (up to 83.77%), sterols (campesterol, Δ5-аvenasterol, β-sitosterol) and tocopherols (β-, δ- and γ-tocopherols). Seed/peel waste and the extracted seed cakes contained macro- and microminerals (K, Mg, Na, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu) which are important for human and animal nutrition. Seed cakes had relatively high protein (24.32%) and cellulose (42.94%) contents, and an interesting amino acid profile. The results from the study contribute to a deeper understanding of the composition of CG fruit, and might be of practical relevance in the development of functional foods and feeds.

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The genus Nicotiana (Solanaceae) includes over 70 species, with a long history of traditional use; many of them are nowadays used in bioengineering, biosynthesis, molecular biology, and other studies, while common tobacco, N. tabacum L., is one of the most economically important industrial crops worldwide. Although Nicotiana species have been extensively investigated, relatively less research has focused on flowers, especially research related to obtaining aromatic products for cosmetic and perfumery use. On the other hand, there is evidence that Nicotiana flowers accumulate various secondary metabolites with a distinct aroma and biological activities, and the flowers represent a biomass available in sufficient quantities. Therefore, this study aimed to determinate the chemical composition (by GC-MS) and the olfactory profiles of a specific type of natural aromatic product (concrete), obtained from the flowers of four Nicotiana species, in a direct comparison between them. The yields of extracted concrete were sufficiently high, varying between the species, 1.4% (N. rustica L.), 2.5% (N. glutinosa L.), 1.6% (N. alata Link&Otto genotype with white flowers), 2.7% (N. alata genotype with pink flowers), 3.2% (N. tabacum, Oriental type), and 5.2% (N. tabacum, Virginia type). The major components of the obtained concretes belonged to different chemical classes: N. rustica and N. tabacum (OR), the hydrocarbons n-tetratriacontane (14.5%; 15.0%) and n-triacontane (12.1%; 13.3%), and 3-methyl-pentanoic acid (11.1%; 12.2%); N. glutinosa, the diterpenes sclareol (25.9%), 3-α-hydroxy-manool (16.3%), and 13-epimanool (14.9%); N. alata (WF), the phenylpropanoid terephthalic acid and di(2-ethylhexyl) ester (42.9%); N. alata (PF), the diterpene tributyl acetylcitrate (30.7%); and N. tabacum (FCV), the hydrocarbons n-hexacosane (12.9%) and n-pentacosane (12.9%). Each of the flower concretes revealed a characteristic odor profile. This is the first report about Nicotiana species as a source for obtaining flower concretes; these initial results about the concrete yield, olfactory profile, and chemical composition are a prerequisite for the possible processing of Nicotiana flowers into new aromatic products for use in perfumery and cosmetics. The study provides new data in favor of the potential of the four Nicotiana species as aromatic plants, as well as a possible alternative use of flowers, a valuable, but discarded, plant material in other applications.