Chemical Composition of the Essential Oils of<i>Pistacia atlantica</i>Desf.

Abstract

Abstract The chemical composition of the three essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation of the resin, leaves and fruits of Pistacia atlantica Desf. (Anacardiaceae) was studied by GC and GC/MS. Monoterpene hydrocarbons constituted the main chemical group in the resin oil, with α-pinene (42.9%) and β-pinene (13.2%) as the major components. Oil of the fruits contained high amounts of oxygenated monoterpenes, with bornyl acetate (21.5%) as the major component, while oxygenated monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes were found to predominate in the oil of leaves among which terpinen-4-ol (21.7%) and elemol (20.0%) were the most abundant components.