Phytochemical Investigation of Thymus zygis L. and Salvia officinalis L. Collected from Fez-Meknes Region, Morocco

THYMUS and Salvia are among the most popular plants both in traditional medicine and in the culinary arts. This study has the aims to detect the chemical composition of the extracts and the powder of Thymus zygis L. (T) and Salvia officinalis L. (S) collected from the Fez-Meknes region. Two extracts were prepared: aqueous and essential oil. Phytochemical tests were performed to qualitatively evaluate the presence or absence of phytoconstituents using standard methods. The essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Two powder analyses were performed: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis and elemental analysis. The drying of both plants took a similar amount of time with a noticeable loss in weight for Salvia. The phytochemical screening revealed the abundant presence of terpenoids, catechic tannins, steroids and sterols in the two plants. GC/MS analysis showed richness in carvacrol for Thymus zygis L. and in thujone for Salvia officinalis L. The analysis by FTIR showed characteristic peak readings of various functional groups in the powders, citing proteins, aliphatic compounds, carbonyl compounds and aromatic rings. In the elemental analysis, there is a high carbon content for Thymus and Salvia (T: 66.70%, S: 53.34%), followed by oxygen (T: 36.45%, S: 37.88%) and hydrogen (T: 6.08%, S: 5.61%). Altogether, this study highlights the richness of these two species in chemical compounds that can be used in the pharmaceutical industry.