Chemotaxonomy of Artemisia variabilis Ten. and A. campestris L. ssp. glutinosa (Ten.) Briq. et Cavill. (Asteraceae) from Italy

Abstract

The composition of the essential oil of Artemisia variabilis Ten. and A. campestris L. ssp. glutinosa (Ten.) Briq. et Cavill was studied in order to clarify the systematic taxonomy of these plants. GC and GC/MS analyses both revealed quantitative and qualitative differences in the composition of their oils. In A. variabilis oil, 1,2-dihydro acenaphthylene (30.0–77.3%) was the predominant component, while mono-, and sesquiterpenic hydrocarbons, alcohols and phenols were present in lower quantities. On the other hand, the oil of A. campestris ssp. glutinosa contained hydrocarbons, monoterpenic-, and sesquiterpenic oxides, while β-pinene (6.9–57.2%), germacrene D (0.4–28.6%) and bicyclogermacrene (1.0–14.5%) were predominant.

Key Word Index:

• Artemisia variabilis
• Artemisia campestris ssp. glutinosa
• essential oil composition
• 1,2-dihydro acenaphthylene
• (Z)-β-ocimene
• γ-terpinene
• β-pinene
• germacrene D
• bicyclogermacrene