Quercus ilex (L.) leaves emit monoterpenes, particularly alpha-pinene, beta-pinene and sabinene. Apart from the monoterpene pools that are stored in specialized structures and have a clear defensive or attractive role, the function of monoterpenes in Q. ilex leaves is unknown. We tested whether monoterpenes have an antioxidant role, as has previously been found for isoprene in isoprene-emitting...

Cancer is a complex genetic disease that is a major public health problem worldwide, accounting for about 7 million deaths each year. Many anticancer drugs currently used clinically have been isolated from plant species or are based on such substances. Accumulating data has revealed anticancer activity in plant-derived monoterpenes. In this review the antitumor activity of 37 monoterpenes found...

Formation of new aerosol particles by nucleation and growth is a significant source of aerosols in the atmosphere. New particle formation events usually take place during daytime, but in some locations they have been observed also at night. In the present study we have combined chamber experiments, quantum chemical calculations and aerosol dynamics models to study nocturnal new particle formati...

The " Salvia phenomenon" is one of the most famous examples of allelopathic interaction between higher plants. The Salvia thickets are surrounded by zones of bare soil ("bare zone", 1-3 m in width), which merge into areas of inhibited grassland ("zone of inhibition") and finally undisturbed grassland at a distance of 3-9 m. This characteristic vegetation pattern was attributed to monoterpenes, ...

Botanical monoterpenes are secondary metabolites present in essential oils produced by plants. Some of them are insect repellents. The bloodsucking bug Rhodnius prolixus Ståhl (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) is one of the main vectors of Chagas disease in the north of South America and some countries in Central America. In this study, we studied the repellence produced by two monoterpenes, menthyl acet...

The essential oils of peppermint and spearmint are distinguished by the position of oxygenation on the constituent p-menthane monoterpenes. Peppermint produces monoterpenes bearing an oxygen at C3, whereas spearmint produces monoterpenes bearing an oxygen at C6. Branching of the monoterpene biosynthetic pathways in these species is determined by two distinct cytochrome P450s that catalyze the r...

Banana, papaya and pineapple are the most consumed tropical fruits in the world, being Brazil one of the main producers. Fungi Colletotrichum musae, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and Fusarium subglutinans f.sp. ananas cause severe post harvest diseases and losses in fruits quality. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effectiveness of five monoterpenes to inhibit the mycelial growth and co...

Atmospheric oxidation of biogenic hydrocarbons, such as monoterpenes, i estimated to be a significant source of global aerosol. Whereas laboratory studies have established that photochemical oxidation of monoterpenes leads to aerosol formation, there are limited field studies detecting such oxidation products in ambient aerosols. Drawing on prior results of monoterpene product analysis under co...

ABSTRACT Changes in monoterpene and phenolic compounds resulting from water stress and colonization by Sphaeropsis sapinea were examined for 9- and 11-year-old red pine trees in a plantation and 3-year-old seedlings in a growth chamber. Four treatments were assigned at random to individual trees in the field: no treatment, herbicide to kill surrounding weeds, supplemental water, and both herbic...

A method is described for quantitative analysis of monoterpenes in western redcedar (Thuja plicata) foliage by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection. Response factors for monoterpenes identified in redcedar are evaluated to determine similarities among monoterpene responses. Evaluation demonstrates that redcedar monoterpenes yield detector responses that fall into two groups. One m...