Phytochemical Composition of the Essential Oils from Two Pimpinella L. species (P. deverroides Boiss. and P. tragium Vill.) Growing Wild in Iran

The experiment was aimed to study the chemical constituents of essential oils from two Pimpinella L. species including P. deverroides - Boiss, and P. tragium Vill. growing wild in Iran. To do this, the essential oil of fruits of two P. tragium populations (Sefidkhani and Hesar, Markazi province, Iran) and one population of P. deverroides (Kerend, Kermanshah province) were extracted by a Clevenger-type apparatus and subjected to GC and GC/MS analyses. Based on the dry weight, the oil content of P. deverroides fruits was calculated as 0.43% and the oil yield of the fruits of P. tragium was ranged from 1.19% (Sefidkhani) to 2.23% (Hesar). In total, 42 compounds, constituting about 87.69-95.86% of studied essential oils, were identified. γ-elemene (12.1%), cis-muurol-5-en-4α-ol (11.2%) and geijerene (10.1%) were the major components of P. deverroides essential oil. Geijerene (33.5%) and γ-elemene (19.4%) were identified as the major components of the essential oil from P. tragium fruits collected from Sefidkhani and geijerene (80.1%) constituted the major portion of the essential oil from P. tragium fruits collected from Hesar. There were significant differences in the phytochemical composition of examined populations, which, considering constituents of an essential oil determine its flavor and biological activities, enabled selection of favored populations for breeding program and for using in different industries.