The volatile fractions of Centaurea arachnoidea and C. montis-borlae, two endemic species growing wild on the Apuan Alps (Tuscany, Italy), were isolated by steam distillation from fresh leaves and flowerheads and analyzed by GC/FID and GC/MS. The yield in essential oil ranged from 0.01% to 0.09% of fresh material. A wide variety of volatile compounds was detected in the examined plant species and organs, both in qualitative and quantitative terms. Sesquiterpenes were identified as the major constituents ranging from 18.9% to 73.2% of the total oil. Alcohols (1.6-25.8%), aldehydes (1.5-12.0%), hydrocarbons (1.8-11.9%), acids (0.2-25.4%), esters (0.2-1.3%), monoterpenes (0.7-1.4%), and miscellaneous compounds (0.6-2.6%), were also detected at variable amounts in all different sample tissues. A series of unidentified compounds was also isolated from the two species, both in leaves and flowerheads, accounting for 2.4-6.7% of the total oil. According to MS spectral data, these substances likely belong to the class of polyunsaturated compounds; moreover they appear to be species-specific, as their presence was only detected either in one or in the other Centaurea species.
Volatile components of two endemic species from the Apuan Alps (Tuscany, Italy) Centaurea aachnoidea and C. montis-borlae. (Asteraceae)
VIEGI, LUCIA;
2010
Abstract
The volatile fractions of Centaurea arachnoidea and C. montis-borlae, two endemic species growing wild on the Apuan Alps (Tuscany, Italy), were isolated by steam distillation from fresh leaves and flowerheads and analyzed by GC/FID and GC/MS. The yield in essential oil ranged from 0.01% to 0.09% of fresh material. A wide variety of volatile compounds was detected in the examined plant species and organs, both in qualitative and quantitative terms. Sesquiterpenes were identified as the major constituents ranging from 18.9% to 73.2% of the total oil. Alcohols (1.6-25.8%), aldehydes (1.5-12.0%), hydrocarbons (1.8-11.9%), acids (0.2-25.4%), esters (0.2-1.3%), monoterpenes (0.7-1.4%), and miscellaneous compounds (0.6-2.6%), were also detected at variable amounts in all different sample tissues. A series of unidentified compounds was also isolated from the two species, both in leaves and flowerheads, accounting for 2.4-6.7% of the total oil. According to MS spectral data, these substances likely belong to the class of polyunsaturated compounds; moreover they appear to be species-specific, as their presence was only detected either in one or in the other Centaurea species.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
