Composition and enantiomeric analysis of the essential oil of the fruits and the leaves of Pistacia vera from Greece

The essential oils of the fruits and the leaves of pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Fresh unripe pistachio fruits were richer in essential oil (0.5 %, w/w) than the leaves (0.1 %, w/w). Twenty one compounds were identified in the essential oil of the fruits and the major components were (+)-alpha-pinene (54.6 %) and terpinolene (31.2 %). The enantiomeric ratio of the major constituents of the essential oil of the fruits was determined using chiral GC/MS and it was found that the (+)/(-)-alpha-pinene ratio was 99.5:0.5, (+)/(-)-limonene 80:20, (+)/(-)-beta-pinene 96:4, and (+)/(-)-alpha-terpineol 0:100. Thirty three compounds were identified in the essential oil of the leaves and the major components were found to be a-pinene (30.0 %), terpinolene (17.6 %) and bornyl acetate (11.3 %).