COMPOSITION AND INTRASPECIFIC CHEMICAL VARIABILITY OF ESSENTIAL OIL FROM Rhanterium adpressum Coss. & Dur.

Abstract

 The intraspecific chemical variability of Rhanterium adpressum essential oils was assessed
for samples collected in four different localities of southern Algeria. Essential oils of leaves and flowers
were obtained by Hydro-distillation and analysed by GC-MS. Monoterpene hydrocarbons represent the
major class (40 to 53%), followed by oxygenated monoterpenes (22-47%). The main components are αpinene (11-29%), β-myrcene (17-28%), linalool (20-31%), α-terpineol (21-24%), α-cadinol (9-17%) and
β-eudesmol (9-20%). The results of both methods of principal component analysis and hierarchical
ascendant classification revealed the presence of three chemical classes characterizing a spatial chemical
variation and also between organs in the studied samples (groups I, II and III): linalool/α-terpineol, αpinene/β-myrcene and α-pinene/β-myrcene/α-terpineol.