Beyond the Bark: An Overview of the Chemistry and Biological Activities of Selected Bark Essential Oils

Abstract

Essential oils hbirthdayave been used by indigenous peoples for medicinal purposes since ancient times. Their easy availability played an important role. Even today, essential oils are used in various fields—be it as aromatic substances in the food industry, as an aid in antibiotic therapy, in aromatherapy, in various household products or in cosmetics. The benefits they bring to the body and health are proven by many sources. Due to their complex composition, they offer properties that will be used more and more in the future. Synergistic effects of various components in an essential oil are also part of the reason for their effectiveness. Infectious diseases will always recur, so it is important to find active ingredients for different therapies or new research approaches. Essential oils extracted from the bark of trees have not been researched as extensively as from other plant components. Therefore, this review will focus on bringing together previous research on selected bark oils to provide an overview of barks that are economically, medicinally, and ethnopharmaceutically relevant. The bark oils described are Cinnamomum verum, Cedrelopsis grevei, Drypetes gossweileri, Cryptocarya massoy, Vanillosmopsis arborea and Cedrus deodara. Literature from various databases, such as Scifinder, Scopus, Google Scholar, and PubMed, among others, were used.

Essential Oils of Mentha arvensis and Cinnamomum cassia Exhibit Distinct Antibacterial Activity at Different Temperatures In Vitro and on Chicken Skin

“…The most dominant groups in MEO are monoterpenoid menthol and monoterpenes, while in CEO, phenylpropanoids prevailed. Our findings are consistent with previous research, since menthol is the main component in MEO, and cinnamaldehyde is the main component in CEO [25,31,34,39]. The antioxidant and antibacterial properties of whole EOs are usually stronger than those of individual components since constituents in trace amounts act in synergy [4].…”

“…CEO has strong broad-spectrum antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, and insecticidal activities [4,31]. Cinnamaldehyde is the main constituent of CEO extracted from the tree bark regardless of the cinnamon species and accounts for approximately 65-80% of CEO [32].…”

“…It inhibits the growth of many tested bacteria, including S. aureus and S. typhimurium [32,33], and has been recently shown to suppress the ability of S. typhimurium to adhere to cells, thus reducing the possibility of infection [20]. Other common CEO components are eugenol, benzaldehyde, cinnamyl acetate, α-pinene, and linalool [31,34]. The mechanisms of the effects of CEOs seem to be complex since the constituents of the oil have different functional groups and may act via different mechanisms to disturb the functioning of the target cells [32].…”

Valorization of the essential oil from Drypetes gossweileri S. Moore (Putranjivaceae): in vitro, in vivo, and in silico nematicidal activity

“…The bark is used as an analgesic for venereal diseases, urethral problems, reptile-repellent, fish poisoning, anthelminthic, vermifugal, and antifilarial ( Wansi et al., 2016 ), and to protect stored food against pests ( Aba et al., 2013 ). The essential oil of D. gossweileri is known for its antimycobacterial ( Moni et al., 2018 ), antimicrobial ( Moni et al., 2018 ; Graf and Stappen, 2022 ), and antifungal activities ( Ghislaine et al., 2013 ).…”

Two-Phase Extraction Processes, Physicochemical Characteristics, and Autoxidation Inhibition of the Essential Oil Nanoemulsion of Citrus reticulata Blanco (Tangerine) Leaves

“…Since ancient times, traditional medicine therapists have used essential oils to prevent, avoid, or treat several diseases and provide the health benefits required. With the development of scientific research and the technological revolution in various aspects, essential oils have become very important due to their chemical composition that is rich in biologically active compounds and their importance in the production of healthy and nutritious products [8], processed foods [9,10], the pharmaceutical industry [11][12][13], cosmetics [14][15][16], anxiety reduction [17], and fragrance applications [18], either directly or indirectly.…”