Applications of Plant-Borne Essential Oils from Lamiaceae, Asteraceae and Apiaceae

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2020) | Viewed by 13794

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

About 3000 medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) are known to produce essential oils (EOs) as an important part of their secondary metabolism. These products are liquid mixtures of volatile, lipophilic, and small molecules, most of them belonging to terpenoids and phenylpropanoids, produced by an array of botanical families endowed with epidermal and internal secretory structures. Among them, the families of Apiaceae, Asteraceae, and Lamiaceae are those with the highest economic importance, as they are cultivated and consumed on a large scale. Currently, only 300 EOs are scalable and available on the market, but many others deserve further investigation in order to support their use on an industrial level. In this regard, the food and agrochemical industries are paying attention to EOs as important niche products to be exploited in the years to come as alternative or complementary to conventional (synthetic) products. On this basis, the aim of this Special Issue is to collect up-to-date reports dealing with the characterization and potential exploitation of EOs produced by Apiaceae, Asteraceae, and Lamiaceae as food preservatives and botanical insecticides. Particular attention will be paid to the development of innovative, green, and sustainable methods to encapsulate EOs, with the aim of assuring their efficacy for minimizing undesirable characteristics. Furthermore, the noteworthy effects of EOs, and their formulations on microorganisms and insects responsible for food spoilage and deterioration, as well as insect vectors and agricultural pests, will be welcome.

Prof. Dr. Filippo Maggi
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs)
  • essential oils (EOs)
  • encapsulation techniques
  • food preservatives
  • botanical insecticides

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 363 KiB  
Article
Volatile Compositions and Antifungal Activities of Native American Medicinal Plants: Focus on the Asteraceae
by Sims K. Lawson, Layla G. Sharp, Chelsea N. Powers, Robert L. McFeeters, Prabodh Satyal and William N. Setzer
Plants 2020, 9(1), 126; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9010126 - 19 Jan 2020
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4717
Abstract
In the past, Native Americans of North America had an abundant traditional herbal legacy for treating illnesses, disorders, and wounds. Unfortunately, much of the ethnopharmacological knowledge of North American Indians has been lost due to population destruction and displacement from their native lands [...] Read more.
In the past, Native Americans of North America had an abundant traditional herbal legacy for treating illnesses, disorders, and wounds. Unfortunately, much of the ethnopharmacological knowledge of North American Indians has been lost due to population destruction and displacement from their native lands by European-based settlers. However, there are some sources of Native American ethnobotany remaining. In this work, we have consulted the ethnobotanical literature for members of the Asteraceae used in Cherokee and other Native American traditional medicines that are native to the southeastern United States. The aerial parts of Eupatorium serotinum, Eurybia macrophylla, Eutrochium purpureum, Polymnia canadensis, Rudbeckia laciniata, Silphium integrifolium, Smallanthus uvedalia, Solidago altissima, and Xanthium strumarium were collected from wild-growing plants in north Alabama. The plants were hydrodistilled to obtain the essential oils and the chemical compositions of the essential oils were determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The essential oils were tested for in-vitro antifungal activity against Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, and Cryptococcus neoformans. The essential oil of E. serotinum showed noteworthy activity against C. neoformans with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of 78 μg/mL, which can be attributed to the high concentration of cyclocolorenone in the essential oil. Full article
32 pages, 611 KiB  
Article
Callicarpa Species from Central Vietnam: Essential Oil Compositions and Mosquito Larvicidal Activities
by Nguyen Huy Hung, Le Thi Huong, Nguyen Thanh Chung, Nguyen Thi Hoai Thuong, Prabodh Satyal, Nguyen Anh Dung, Thieu Anh Tai and William N. Setzer
Plants 2020, 9(1), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9010113 - 16 Jan 2020
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 3896
Abstract
There are around 140 species in the genus Callicarpa, with 23 species occurring in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Callicarpa species have been poorly studied. In this work, the leaf essential oils of C. bodinieri, C. candicans, C. formosana, C. longifolia [...] Read more.
There are around 140 species in the genus Callicarpa, with 23 species occurring in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Callicarpa species have been poorly studied. In this work, the leaf essential oils of C. bodinieri, C. candicans, C. formosana, C. longifolia, C. nudiflora, C. petelotii, C. rubella, and C. sinuata, have been obtained from plants growing in central Vietnam. The chemical compositions of the essential oils were determined using gas chromatography – mass spectrometry. Mosquito larvicidal activities of the essential oils were carried out against Aedes aegypti. All of the Callicarpa leaf essential oils showed larvicidal activity, but two samples of C. candicans were particularly active with 48-h LC50 values of 2.1 and 3.8 μg/mL. Callicarpa candicans essential oil should be considered as a potential alternative mosquito control agent. Full article
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11 pages, 18124 KiB  
Article
The Essential Oil of Thymbra capitata and its Application as A Biocide on Stone and Derived Surfaces
by Rossella Gagliano Candela, Filippo Maggi, Giuseppe Lazzara, Sergio Rosselli and Maurizio Bruno
Plants 2019, 8(9), 300; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants8090300 - 24 Aug 2019
Cited by 40 | Viewed by 4332
Abstract
Many chemicals used nowadays for the preservation of cultural heritage pose a risk to both human health and the environment. Thus, it is desirable to find new and eco-friendly biocides that can replace the synthetic ones. In this regard, plant essential oils represent [...] Read more.
Many chemicals used nowadays for the preservation of cultural heritage pose a risk to both human health and the environment. Thus, it is desirable to find new and eco-friendly biocides that can replace the synthetic ones. In this regard, plant essential oils represent effective alternatives to synthetic substances for the preservation of historical monuments. Thymbra capitata (syn. Thymus capitatus) is a medicinal and aromatic plant growing in the Mediterranean area and endowed with important pharmacological properties related to its essential oil. Among them, the antimicrobial ones make the T. capitata essential oil an ideal candidate for industrial applications; for instance, as biocide for the inhibition and elimination of biological patinas of cyanobacteria and green algae on historical monuments. In the present work, we studied the chemical composition of the essential oil from T. capitata growing in Malta by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The major volatile component is the phenolic monoterpene carvacrol (73.2%), which is capable of damaging the cytoplasmic membrane and to interfere both in the growth curve and in the invasive capacity, though the contribution of minor components γ-terpinene and p-cymene cannot be disregarded. For the oil application on the stone surface, Pickering emulsions systems were prepared with an essential oil/water 1:3 mass ratio stabilized with kaolinite at 4 mass% in the presence of Laponite®; this allowed to limit the fast volatility of the oil and guaranteed a better application and an easier removal from the artefacts attacked by biodeteriogens both indoor and outdoor. This formulation caused the elimination of biodeteriogens from treated surfaces without residuals or films on artworks surface, and the effect was retained up to four months. Full article
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