Content and composition of essential oils in some Asteraceae species

The content and composition of the essential oils of five Asteraceae species from Estonia were studied. The oil yields ranged from traces up to 0.2%. By using GC-FID and GC-MS methods a total of 115 compounds were identified and significant qualitative and quantitative differences were observed among the studied species. The main constituents of the essential oils of the studied Asteraceae species were as follows: Chamomilla recutita: bisabolol oxide A (39.4%), bisabolone oxide A (13.9%), (Z)-en-yne-dicycloether (11.5%), bisabolol oxide B (9.9%), alpha-bisabolol (5.6%), and chamazulene (4.7%); Chamomilla suaveolens: (Z)-en-yne-dicycloether (37.2%), geranyl isovalerate (22.9%), (E)-beta-farnesene (15.6%); Anthemis tinctoria: alpha-eudesmol (10.2%), gamma-cadinol (8.7%), gamma-cadinene (4.0%); Matricaria perforata: (Z,Z)-matricaria ester (77.9%), (E)-beta-farnesene (3.5%), matricaria ester isomer (3.5%), and matricaria lactone (3.0%); and Leucanthemum vulgare: (E)-beta-farnesene (7.3%), hexadecahydrocyclobuta[1,2:3,4]dicyclooctene (5.3%), decanoic acid (4.9%), and gamma-eudesmol (4.5%). The number of compounds found in all plant oils studied was 14.