COMPOSITION OF ESSENTIAL OILS OF CUMINUM CYMINUM UNRIPE FRUITS, PIPER BETLE VARIETY BANGLA LEAVES AND VITEX NEGUNDO LEAVES, FLOWERS AND FRUITS

Mohammed Ali* and Shahnaz Sultana

ABSTRACT

Cuminum cyminum L. (Apiaceae) seeds are used as a spice and to treat cough, diarrhea, digestive disorders, dyspepsia, epilepsy, fever, headache, liver and lung diseases, morning sickness and toothache. Piper betle L. (Piperaceae) leaves are beneficial to cure asthma, blood diseases, bronchitis, conjunctivitis, constipation, coughs, headache, itches, leucorrhoea, gum inflammation, rheumatism, malaria, night blindness, stomach disorders and throat irritation. Vitex negundo L. (Lamiaceae) is used to relieve arthritic joints, asthma, bronchitis, consumption, eye diseases, headaches, leucoderma, spleen enlargement, children teeth diseases, scorpion sting, snake bite, sinusitis and tubercular neck swellings, to control mosquitoes and to promote the growth of hair. The present study was carried out to analyze essential oils of these plants. The materials were hydro-distilled to get the essential oils which were analyzed by GC and GC-MS techniques. The essential oil from the unripe green seeds of C. cyminum was consisted of mainly cymene (37.20%), α-phellandrene (22.26%), sabinene (18.35%), (1,1-dimethylethyl)-3-methyl benzene (3.65%), (2E,4E)-2,4-heptadienoic acid (3.61%) and γ-himachalene (2.19%). The prominent constituents of the essential oil of the leaves of P. betle var. Bangla were acetyl eugenol (22.79%), valencene (18.01%), eugenol (16.15%), α-amorphene (8. 19%) and γ-cadinene (6.34%). The main constituents of the oil of the leaves of V. negundo were viridoflorol (15.8%), 4-terpineol (13.6%), β-caryophyllene (12.8%), β-phellandrene (10.9%), sabinene (7.3%) and palmitic acid (4.9%). The predominant components of the oil of the flowers of V. negundo were sabinene (22.7 %), viridoflorol (15.9%), globulol (11.6%), α-selinene (10.7%), caryophyllene oxide (9.8%) and β-caryophyllene (9.1%). The fruit essential oil of V. negudo contained mainly n-hexadecanoic acid (19.1%), β-selinene (15.2%), β-caryophyllene (14.5%), α-cedrene (10.4%) and viridiflorol (7.1%).

Keywords: Cuminum Cyminum, Piper betle variety Bangla, Vitex negundo, essential oils, analysis.