Composition and chemical variability of the essential oil from Pistacia lentiscus L. growing wild in Algeria Part 1: Leaf oil

The chemical composition of 17 samples of leaf oil from Pistacia lentiscus L. growing wild in Algeria was investigated by GC/FID (retention indices), GUMS and C-13-NMR. Leaf oils were dominated by monoterpene hydrocarbons. alpha-Pinene (20.0-34.2%), myrcene (23.0-33.1%) or limonene (25.5-43.8%) were the major components. Statistical analysis of our results confirmed the chemical variability of the leaf oil of P. lentiscus and showed an atypical composition characterized by the pre-eminence of sesquiterpene hydrocarbons.