Comparative investigation of the essential oils of Achillea talagonica boiss. and A. millefolium, chemical composition and immunological studies

In this study, the oils of Achillea talagonica and A. millefolium, which grow widely in Iran, have been analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The main constituents of the oil for A. talagonica were 1,8-cineole (9.7%) and camphor (21.9%), while the major components of the oil for A. millefolium were alpha-copaene (11.1%) and (E)-nerolidol (8.8%). Effects of these oils were studied on humoral immune responses in BALB/c mice. The oil isolated from Iranian A. millefolium ssp. millefolium possessed a high percentage of sesquiterpenes (55.4%) in which alpha-bisabolol was the main compound, while no proazulene or 1,8-cineole were detected. A high percentage of sesquiterpenes, presence of proazulene in A. millefolium (1%) and the lack of these compounds in A. talagonica could account for the different immunological effects of these plants.