Considerations on the Use of Active Compounds Obtained from Lavender

Abstract

Lavender is among the medicinal and aromatic plants with high economic value in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and aromatherapeutic industries, and in its composition has numerous compounds, such as tannins, anthocyanins, minerals, saponins, flavonoids, polyphenols, essential oil and others. The qualitative and quantitative characteristics of lavender are best highlighted by extraction techniques such as hydrodistillation, steam distillation and supercritical CO2 extraction. In the water distillation extraction method, the plants are soaked in water until boiling and steam is released, carrying the essential oils with it, which are then separated via cooling. Steam distillation is one of the most common methods used to extract essential oils from medicinal and aromatic plants. Unlike hydrodistillation, where the water is stored directly in a tank, in this method, the steam is transported into the tank from the outside and the oils are released from the plant components when the steam penetrates the structures that contain it. Essential oils contain essential compounds that have antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-fungal, etc., properties. All the component parts of lavender contain essential oils, which are distributed as follows: in leaves at about 0.4%, in stems at about 0.2%, and in inflorescences at about 2–4.5%.

Antimicrobial Properties and Assessment of the Content of Bioactive Compounds Lavandula angustifolia Mill. Cultivated in Southern Poland

“…At the same time, using a statistical cluster analysis diagram, it was shown that there is a relationship between the antimicrobial activities and the presence of specific phenolic compounds in the extracts. According to Tăbăraşu et al [3], the quantity and quality of phenolic compounds in the plant material depends on both the ambient temperature, the season, the nutrients in the soil, and the anatomical part of the plant. The total phenol content in the leaf extracts was 31.64 mg GAE/g and was less than half that of the flowers.…”

“…In addition to the oil, compounds such as tannins, phenolic acids, flavones, anthocyanidins, saponins, polyphenols, and minerals have been identified in the chemical composition of the plant. According to Tăbăraşu et al [3], essential oil can contain up to 300 different compounds, the qualitative and quantitative composition of which depends on the species, morphological part of the plant, and environmental factors affecting yield. Barbieri and Borsotto [4], in their research, indicate that younger plants synthesize more essential oil than older plant seedlings.…”