Page 120 - Medicinal Plants_PharmD general

Uses:

1- Volatile oils are used for their therapeutic action e.g. oil of eucalyptus
and oil of clove.

2- Some oils are used as flavouring agents e.g. oil of cinnamon and oil
cardamom

3- Others are used in perfumery e.g. oil of lavender and oil of rosemary.

Components of some volatile oils:

Name Important components of the oil

Lavender oil Linalol
Linalyl acetate
German Chamomile oil Cineole
Geraniol
Cinnamon leaf bark oil Limonene
Cinnamon leaf oil Bisabolene
Clove oil Chamazulene
Nutmeg Bisabolol
Ester of angelic and tiglic acids
Cinnamaldehyde 60-75%
Eugenol 4-10%
Cinnamyl acetate
Eugenol 70 to 80%
Eugenol 85-70%
Acetyl eugenol
Myristicin up to 4%
Pinene, camphene and sabinene 60-80%
elemicin, isoelemicin 2%
eugenol & methyleugenol 1%

Chromatographic identification of the constituent of the volatile oils:
By gas chromatography.

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