Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. Chemotypes in Eastern Iberian Peninsula: Essential Oil Variation and Relation with Ecological Factors

Abstract

Essential oil (EO) extracts coming from two representative populations of Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. subesp. suaveolens in Eastern Iberian Peninsula were analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry and flame ion detector. Plant sampling was carried out in the morning and evening in order to study diurnal variation in EO profiles. Likewise, leaves and inflorescences were analyzed separately. Two chemotypes corresponding to each one of the populations were identified, with piperitenone oxide (35.2 - 74.3%) and piperitone oxide (83.9 - 91.3%), respectively, as major compounds. Once different chemotypes were identified, canonical correspondence analysis was employed to evaluate the effect of the bioclimatic and edaphic factors recorded in each location on the observed differences. Statistical analysis suggested that these chemotypes were closely related to specific environmental factors, mainly the bioclimatic ones. Concretely, piperitenone oxide chemotype can be associated to supramediterranean bioclimatic conditions and soils with major salinity and water field capacity. On the other hand, the most volatile fraction (hydrocarbon monoterpenes) reached its higher level in the morning; specifically, a noticeable amount of limonene was found in morning samples of flowers (4.8 - 10.6%). This fact can be related to ecological role of volatile compounds in order to attract pollinator insects.

Effect of Environmental Factors on Plectranthus Neochilus Volatile Composition: A GC-MS-Based Metabolomics Approach

“…The first environmental factor evaluated in our study was the time of the day when samples were collected, which did not affect the P. neochilus volatile composition despite changes in temperature, humidity, and luminosity throughout the day. Daily variation in volatile composition was detected for other Lamiaceae species, such as mint (Mentha suaveolens -La-miaceae), which showed higher levels of volatile compounds in the morning [32]. Our results indicate that the volatile composition of P. neochilus remains similar throughout the day, thus leaves of this species can be collected at any time without compromising the bioactivity.…”

Spatial Variation in Yield, Chemical Composition, and Phytotoxic Activity of Cistus ladanifer Essential Oils

“…The effect of environmental factors on the chemical composition of essential oils extracted from several Mediterranean evergreen species such as Pistacia lentiscus , [16] Mentha suaveolens , [40] Myrtus communis , [41] and Rosmarinus officinalis [42] was previously determined. For our scenario, as described above for EO yield, all tested plots of C. ladanifer grew probably under similar microclimatic conditions (Table S1).…”

Effects of Piper aduncum (Piperales: Piperaceae) Essential Oil and Its Main Component Dillapiole on Detoxifying Enzymes and Acetylcholinesterase Activity of Amblyomma sculptum (Acari: Ixodidae)

“…The need to perform biological activity tests with the major compound(s) found in the chromatographic analysis of an EO is necessary due to two main reasons: the first is that EOs can exhibit variations in their compound composition due to varying environmental conditions, soil composition, growth stages, biotic factors, and genetic diversity within the plant [35][36][37][38]. The second reason is that EOs are complex mixtures of monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and phenylpropanoids, and the primary components can interact synergistically or antagonistically with minor constituents, thereby producing results that differ from what might be expected for individual compounds [39].…”