Essential Oil Composition and Volatile Profile of Seven Helichrysum Species Grown in Italy

Abstract

Helichrysum genus consists of about 600 species widespread throughout the world, especially in South Africa and in the Mediterranean area. In this study the aroma profile (HS-SPME) and the EO compositions of seven Helichrysum species (H. cymosum, H. odoratissimum, H. petiolare, H. fontanesii, H. saxatile, H. sanguineum, and H. tenax) were evaluated. All the plants were grown in Italy under the same growth conditions. The volatile constituents, particularly monoterpenes, depended by the plant's genotype and ecological adaptation. This study represents the first headspace evaluation on the selected plants and the results evidenced that monoterpenes represented the main class of constituents in five of the seven species analysed (from 59.2% to 95.0%). The higher content in sesquiterpene hydrocarbons was observed in the Mediterranean species of H. sanguineum (68.0%). Only H. saxatile showed relative similar abundance of monoterpenes and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons. The essential oil composition of the majority of examined species are characterised by high percentage of sesquiterpenes (especially β-caryophyllene and δ-cadinene) ranging from 51.3% to 92.0%, except for H. cymosum, H. tenax, and H. sanguineum leaves where monoterpenes predominated (from 51.7% to 74.7%).

Volatilome Analyses and In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of the Essential Oils from Five South African Helichrysum Species

“…As a part of our on-going collaboration with CREA (Centro di Ricerca Orticoltura e Florovivaismo) in Sanremo (Italy), we focused on the exploitation of South African Helichrysum species for ornamental and industrial application, and H. nudifolim [ 20 ], H. cymosum L., and H. tenax M.D. Hend [ 21 ], as well as other eight species [ 22 ], were studied for their volatilome.…”

A Synthesis and Review of Medicinal Uses, Phytochemistry and Biological Activities of Helichrysum Odoratissimum (L.) Sweet

“…Maroyi to vary with geographical origin of the specimens as shown in Table 2. The major compounds that have been identified from the species include(Z)-β-ocimene (<0.01-10.8%), docosanoic acid methyl ester (11.4%), bifloratriene (7.4-11.6%), germacrene A (1.1-11.8%), δ-cadinene (0.3-13.2%), humulene (14.1%), α-humulene (<0.01-14.6%), 1,22-docosanediol (15.1%), (E,E)-farnesol (16.8%), 1,8-cineole (2.7-17.1%), 1-isopropyl-3-methylbenxene (18.3%), α-curcumene (4.0-20.3%), caryophyllene oxide (0.1-20.6%), β-caryophyllene (1.3-25.2%), palmitic acid (27.1%), limonene (<0.01-31.6%), pelugone (34.2%), p-menthone (35.4%), α-pinene (1.1-47.1%), and β-pinene (0.1-51.6%) [38,42,43,51,65,75,78,79,[81][82][83][84]. Future research should focus on evaluating the biological activities of the isolated compounds.…”

Helichrysum Cymosum (L.) D.DON (Asteraceae): Medicinal Uses, Chemistry, and Biological Activities

“…The composition of essential oils appears to vary with the geographical origin of the specimens as shown in Table 3. The major compounds that have been identified from the species include α-pinene (0.8%-12.4%), ∆-3-carene (6.8%-16.1%), β-caryophyllene (8.5%-17.8%), 1,8-cineole (1.0%-20.4%), trans-caryophyllene (27.0%), and (Z)-β-ocimene (<0.01%-50.4%) [85,89,[93][94][95][96][97]. Future research should focus on evaluating the biological activities of the isolated compounds.…”