Essential oil composition of Artemisia japonica Thunb. from Kerala

Abstract

The genus Artemisia has a medicinal history reaching back over two millennia and some of its extracts and isolates are of proven efficacy against several diseases. Artemisia japonica Thunb. (Syn. Artemisia parviflora Buch. -Ham. ex D. Don) is a member of family Asteraceae. The plant is collected from Idukki district of Kerala. The leaves were shade dried and the essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation using Clevenger type apparatus and subjected to GC-MS analysis. Fifteen compounds were identified in the oil, constituting 34.3 % of the oils. Spathulenol (12 %), Germacrene D (7.5 %), I²-elemene (2.8 %), caryophyllene (2.4%) were found to be the major components of the essential oil. The oil is dominated by sesquiterpene hydrocarbons.