Essential oil composition of Pimpinella aurea DC from Iran

Essential oils were isolated by hydrodistillation from the stems, flowers and seeds of Pimpinella aurea D.C. They were collected individually from Fasham (north-west of Tehran province). The yields of stem + leaf, flower and seed oils were 0.4%, 1.5% and 2.0% w/w, respectively; 32 constituents were identified in the stem + leaf oil, 18 in the flower oil and eight in the seed oil. Major constituents of the stem + leaf oil were: 1,8-cineol and limonene (21.4%), viridiflorol (12.8%), alpha-pinene (11.5%), kessane (10.5%), germacrene D (4.9%), beta-bisabolene (4.2%), alpha-zingiberene (3.3%) and citronellyl acetate (3.1%). Major constituents of the flower oil were: viridiflorol (32.5%), beta-bisabolene (29.5%), caryophyllene oxide (6.6%), 1,8-cineol + limonene (8.9%) and estragol (5.1%). Major constituents of the seed oil were: beta-bisabolene (50.8%), and viridiflorol (37.0%). Three compounds (beta-bisabolene, viridiflorol and caryophyllene oxide) were common to all three oils. 1,8-Cineol and limonene, kessane and alpha-pinene were the major compounds in the stem + leaf and flower oils but were not found in the seed oil. Copyright (c) 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.