Phytochemical typologies in some populations of Myrtus communis L. on caprione promontory (East liguria, Italy)

The composition of the essential oils of leaves and fruits of Myrtus communis from Italy has been studied. Differences between plants collected in different habitats have been educed. The main diversities in the composition of the essential oils of the leaves between the two habitats centered on alpha-pinene and limonene, which were identified in greater amounts in plants living on calcareous soil, while linalool, linalyl acetate and trans-myrtanol acetate were detected in higher percentages on siliceous soil. Furthermore, the different olfactory perceptions noted for plants growing in the two habitats were clarified by mean of SPME. Among the volatiles emitted in vivo by the plants, the percentages of alpha-pinene, limonene and, 1,8-cineole were considerably lower in the leaves of plants growing on siliceous soil than to those emitted by the leaves of plants from calcareous soil. On the other hand, beta-caryophyllene duplicated its percentage and beta-elemene passed from 0 to 17.2% in plant growing on calcareous soil. Also the volatiles emitted in vivo by the fruits showed very similar patterns. In all the samples, trans-myrtanol acetate has been identified for the first time as a natural constituent of an essential oil of Myrtus. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.