Effect of cold plasma on essential oil content and composition of lemon verbena

Abstract

Cold plasma is known as a novel nonthermal processing method for decontamination of medicinal and aromatic plants ( MAP s); however, there are little research studies about its effects on active ingredients of these plants. The aim of this research was to investigate the influence of low‐pressure cold plasma ( LPCP ) treatments (1, 3, and 5 min) on the essential oil (EO) content and composition of lemon verbena leaves. The EO content was determined using hydro‐distillation, and the composition of the extracted EOs was quantified using gas chromatography and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry techniques. The results showed that by increasing the LPCP treatment duration, the EO content was reduced from 1.2 to 0.9 (% v/w). The highest content of monoterpene hydrocarbons (e.g., limonene) and oxygenated sesquiterpenes (e.g., spathulenol and globulol) was also observed in LPCP ‐treated ones, whereas the oxygenated monoterpenes (e.g., citral) content of control was measurably higher than those treated with LCPC .

The Effect of Cold Plasma Pretreatment on Water-Suspended Herbs Measured in the Content of Bioactive Compounds, Antioxidant Activity, Volatile Compounds and Microbial Count of Final Extracts

“…Thus, it can be concluded that the intensity of the odor of the extracts after plasma treatment decreased. The same effect of plasma on the reduction of the volatile compound profile was observed for lemon verbena leaves treated with plasma for 5 min [ 30 ]. Plasma treatment may disintegrate the cellular structures in the same manner as in the case of microbes [ 6 ].…”

Postharvest Operations of Cannabis and Their Effect on Cannabinoid Content: A Review

“…Plasma sources can be delivered to the object either directly (sample comes into direct connection with the plasma area) or indirectly (sample contacts the plasma or plasma-activated media) [ 60 ]. Cold plasma has been investigated for enhancement of the drying efficiency and quality of different foods, medicinal plants, and herbs, such as shiitake mushrooms [ 58 ], chili peppers [ 61 ], corn kernels [ 62 ], wolfberries [ 63 ], jujube slices [ 64 ], saffron [ 65 ], grapes [ 66 ], lemon verbena [ 67 ], coneflower leaves [ 68 ], and many others. All of these authors remarked that CP pre-treatment can significantly increase the drying efficiency and product quality concerning phytochemicals or microbial safety.…”

Plasma bubbling effect on essential oil yield, extraction efficiency, and flavor compound of Cuminum cyminum L. seeds

“…Various reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, along with free radicals, are produced by plasma depending on the gas used (Aparajhitha & Mahendran, 2019). They are widely used for surface treatment, and few studies have been reported in the field of essential oil extraction and oil composition analysis (Ebadi, Abbasi, Harouni, & Sefidkon, 2019; Kodama, Thawatchaipracha, & Sekiguchi, 2014; Pragna et al, 2019). Hence, in the current study, atmospheric pressure cold plasma gas has been bubbled through the mixture (solid–liquid phase) of cumin sample and distilled water in a 1:7 ratio at different input voltage and treatment time to analyze the cumin essential oil yield and changes in cuminaldehyde concentration.…”