Chemotypic Characterization and Biological Activity of Rosmarinus officinalis

Abstract

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) is a popular herb in cooking, traditional healing, and aromatherapy. The essential oils of R. officinalis were obtained from plants growing in Victoria (Australia), Alabama (USA), Western Cape (South Africa), Kenya, Nepal, and Yemen. Chemical compositions of the rosemary oils were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry as well as chiral gas chromatography. The oils were dominated by (+)-α-pinene (13.5%–37.7%), 1,8-cineole (16.1%–29.3%), (+)-verbenone (0.8%–16.9%), (−)-borneol (2.1%–6.9%), (−)-camphor (0.7%–7.0%), and racemic limonene (1.6%–4.4%). Hierarchical cluster analysis, based on the compositions of these essential oils in addition to 72 compositions reported in the literature, revealed at least five different chemotypes of rosemary oil. Antifungal, cytotoxicity, xanthine oxidase inhibitory, and tyrosinase inhibitory activity screenings were carried out, but showed only marginal activities.

Chemical Composition and Phytotoxic Activity of Rosmarinus officinalis Essential Oil

“…In the composition of our R. officinalis essential oil, α-pinene (24.9%), verbenol (8.5%), verbenone (8.5%), and 1,8cineol (8.2%) are the main components. Our results agree with many different studies where it has been reported that α-Pinene and 1,8-cineol dominated in R. officinalis essential oil [7,[13][14][15][16][17]. Farhat have found also camphor (14.5-20.4%) and myrtenal (4.3-7.4%) that in our essential oil are present in low percentage or are absent [13].…”

Behavioural response of green peach aphid Myzus persicae (Sulzer) to volatiles from different rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) clones

“…In this sense, genetic selection can be an essential lever for optimizing the effectiveness of rosemary and promoting its use by producers. Indeed, VOC production varies quantitatively and qualitatively according to the cultivars (Satyal et al , ), generating a variable olfactory response from aphids (da Costa et al , ; Staudt et al , ; Rajabaskar et al , ; Schröder et al , ). Still, by the same logic, understanding the action modes of companion plants and identifying the molecules involved should help us to select the most successful genotypes.…”

Natural actives for wound healing: A review

“…Rosmarinus officinalis L., popularly known as rosemary (Lamiaceae), is an evergreen shrub with aromatic needle‐like leaves native to the Mediterranean and Asia. Currently it is cultivated in temperate locations around the world as a decorative garden plant and culinary herb (Satyal et al, ). There are several listed varieties of R .…”

“…Rosemary extracts contain a number of phytochemicals, including phenolic diterpenes (carnosic acid, carnosol, and 12‐O‐methylcarnosic acid), caffeoyl derivatives (rosmarinic acid), and flavones (isoscutellarein 7‐O‐glucoside and genkwanin; del Baño et al, ). Although rosemary essential oils can contain α‐pinene, 1,8‐cineole, verbenone, borneol, camphor, and limonene (Satyal et al, ), the biological activities of R . officinalis essential oils doubtlessly depend on its chemical compositions.…”

“…No adverse effects of the formulation were observed(Fleck et al, 2016). 6 | Rosmarinus officinalis L.Rosmarinus officinalis L., popularly known as rosemary (Lamiaceae), is an evergreen shrub with aromatic needle-like leaves native to the Mediterranean and Asia. Currently it is cultivated in temperate locations around the world as a decorative garden plant and culinary herb(Satyal et al, 2017). There are several listed varieties of R. officinalis,and numerous cultivars have been developed as well, which leads to a variety of chemical compositions.…”