Herbs and the essential oils derived from them have been used from the beginning of human history for different purposes. Their beneficial properties have been applied to mask unpleasant odors, ...attract the attention of other people, add flavor and aroma properties to prepared dishes, perfumes, and cosmetics, etc. Herbs and essential oils (EOs) have also been used in medicine because of their biological properties, such as larvicidal action, analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, antioxidant, fungicide, and antitumor activities, and many more. Many EOs exhibit antimicrobial properties, which is extremely important in fields of science and industry, such as medicine, agriculture, or cosmetology. Among the 250 EOs which are commercially available, about a dozen possess high antimicrobial potential. According to available papers and patents, EOs seem to be a potential alternative to synthetic compounds, especially because of the resistance that has been increasingly developed by pathogenic microorganisms. In this review we summarize the latest research studies about the most-active EOs that are known and used because of their antimicrobial properties. Finally, it is noteworthy that the antimicrobial activities of EOs are not preeminent for all strains. Further investigations should, thus, focus on targeting EOs and microorganisms.
The quality control of essential oils (EO) principally aims at revealing the presence of adulterations and at quantifying compounds that are limited by law by evaluating EO chemical compositions, ...usually in terms of the normalised relative abundance of selected markers, for comparison to reference values reported in pharmacopoeias and/or international norms. Common adulterations of EO consist of the addition of cheaper EO or synthetic materials. This adulteration can be detected by calculating the percent normalised areas of selected markers or the enantiomeric composition of chiral components. The dilution of the EO with vegetable oils is another type of adulteration. This adulteration is quite devious, as it modifies neither the qualitative composition of the resulting EO nor the marker's normalised percentage abundance, which is no longer diagnostic, and an absolute quantitative analysis is required. This study aims at verifying the application of the two above approaches (i.e., normalised relative abundance and absolute quantitation) to detect EO adulterations, with examples involving selected commercial EO (lavender, bergamot and tea tree) adulterated with synthetic components, EO of different origin and lower economical values and heavy vegetable oils. The results show that absolute quantitation is necessary to highlight adulteration with heavy vegetable oils, providing that a reference quantitative profile is available.
Clove (
L. Myrtaceae) is an aromatic plant widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical countries, rich in volatile compounds and antioxidants such as eugenol, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene. Clove ...essential oil has received considerable interest due to its wide application in the perfume, cosmetic, health, medical, flavoring, and food industries. Clove essential oil has biological activity relevant to human health, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, and insecticidal activity. The impacts of the extraction method (hydrodistillation, steam distillation, ultrasound-assisted extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, cold pressing, and supercritical fluid extraction) on the concentration of the main volatile compounds in clove essential oil and organic clove extracts are shown. Eugenol is the major compound, accounting for at least 50%. The remaining 10-40% consists of eugenyl acetate, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene. The main biological activities reported are summarized. Furthermore, the main applications in clove essential oil in the food industry are presented. This review presents new biological applications beneficial for human health, such as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anesthetic, antinociceptive, and anticancer activity. This review aims to describe the effects of different methods of extracting clove essential oil on its chemical composition and food applications and the biological activities of interest to human health.
Essential oils are liquid extracts from aromatic plants, which have numerous applications in multiple industries. There are a variety of methods used for the extraction of essential oils, with each ...method exhibiting certain advantages and determining the biological and physicochemical properties of the extracted oils. Essential oils from different plant species contain more than 200 constituents which are comprised of volatile and non-volatile components. The application of essential oils as antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-viral agents is due to their effective and efficient properties, inter alia.
Several advanced (supercritical fluid extraction, subcritical extraction liquid, solvent-free microwave extraction) and conventional (hydrodistillation, steam distillation, hydrodiffusion, solvent extraction) methods have been discussed for the extraction of essential oils. Advanced methods are considered as the most promising extraction techniques due to less extraction time, low energy consumption, low solvent used and less carbon dioxide emission.
This manuscript reviewed the major research studies in the field and discussed several research findings on the chemical composition of essential oils, methods of oil extraction, and application of these oils in pharmaceutical and therapeutic fields. These essential oils can be used as anticancer, antimicrobial, antiviral, and as skin permeation enhancer agents.
Members of the genus
L. have been used in traditional medicine for centuries for treating gastrointestinal disorders, pain, inflammatory conditions, wounds, and for cancer prevention and antiaging, ...among others. Many of the biological activities of
species can be attributed to nonvolatile curcuminoids, but these plants also produce volatile chemicals. Essential oils, in general, have shown numerous beneficial effects for health maintenance and treatment of diseases. Essential oils from
spp., particularly
, have demonstrated various health-related biological activities and several essential oil companies have recently marketed
oils. This review summarizes the volatile components of various
species, the biological activities of
essential oils, and potential safety concerns of
essential oils and their components.
High-value oils from plants Dyer, John M; Stymne, Sten; Green, Allan G ...
The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology,
20/May , Volume:
54, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
The seed oils of domesticated oilseed crops are major agricultural commodities that are used primarily for nutritional applications, but in recent years there has been increasing use of these oils ...for production of biofuels and chemical feedstocks. This is being driven in part by the rapidly rising costs of petroleum, increased concern about the environmental impact of using fossil oil, and the need to develop renewable domestic sources of fuel and industrial raw materials. There is also a need to develop sustainable sources of nutritionally important fatty acids such as those that are typically derived from fish oil. Plant oils can provide renewable sources of high-value fatty acids for both the chemical and health-related industries. The value and application of an oil are determined largely by its fatty acid composition, and while most vegetable oils contain just five basic fatty acid structures, there is a rich diversity of fatty acids present in nature, many of which have potential usage in industry. In this review, we describe several areas where plant oils can have a significant impact on the emerging bioeconomy and the types of fatty acids that are required in these various applications. We also outline the current understanding of the underlying biochemical and molecular mechanisms of seed oil production, and the challenges and potential in translating this knowledge into the rational design and engineering of crop plants to produce high-value oils in plant seeds.
Currently, the authentication of camellia oil (CAO) has become very important due to the possible adulteration of CAO with cheaper vegetable oils such as rapeseed oil (RSO). Therefore, we report a ...Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic method for detecting the authenticity of CAO and quantifying the blended levels of RSO. In this study, two characteristic spectral bands (1119 cm
and 1096 cm
) were selected and used for monitoring the purity of CAO. In combination with principal component analysis (PCA), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), and partial least squares regression (PLSR) analysis, qualitative and quantitative methods for the detection of camellia oil adulteration were proposed. The results showed that the calculated I
/I
intensity ratio facilitated an initial check for pure CAO and six other edible oils. PCA was used on the optimized spectral region of 1800-650 cm
. We observed the classification of CAO and RSO as well as discrimination of CAO with RSO adulterants. LDA was utilized to classify CAO from RSO. We could differentiate and classify RSO adulterants up to 1%
/
. In the quantitative PLSR models, the plots of actual values versus predicted values exhibited high linearity. Root mean square error of calibration (RMSEC) and root mean square error of cross validation (RMSECV) values of the PLSR models were 1.4518%-3.3164%
/
and 1.7196%-3.8136%
/
, respectively. This method was successfully applied in the classification and quantification of CAO adulteration with RSO.
Objective
To analyse the clinical characteristics and sensitivity of an essential oil patch test series (EOS) in patients sensitized to their own essential oils (EOs).
Method
We analysed the clinical ...data and patch test results obtained with the European baseline series (BSE) and an EOS, as well as the mode of use of EOs, through a questionnaire included in the patient file.
Results
The study included 42 patients (79% women, average age 50 years) with allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), 8 patients required hospitalization. All patients were sensitized to the EO they used, primarily lavender (Lavandula augustifolia, 8000‐28‐0), tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia leaf oil, 68647‐73‐4), ravintsara (Cinnamomum camphora oil, 92201‐50‐8), and 2 cases were attributed to helichrysum (helichrysum italicum flower absolute, 90045‐56‐0). 71% had positive patch tests to fragrance mix I or II, 9 only to the EOS and 4 only with their personal EO. Interestingly, 40% of patients did not spontaneously mention the use of EOs, and only 33% received advice on their use at the time of purchase.
Conclusion
Patch tests with the BSE, limonene and linalool HP, and oxidized tea tree oil is sufficient to detect most EO‐sensitized patients. The most important is to test the patient's own used EOs.
Essential oils (EOs) as consumer products induce allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), but patients often forget to mention their use. Testing a specific series for EO ACD is not useful, it is necessary to test the individual's own EO. Patients remain underinformed about the precautions to be taken when using Eos.
Fats and oils continue to be the main feedstock for alternative transport fuels, especially for FAME (biodiesel) production. Nevertheless, hydrotreated vegetable oils (HVO), which are mixtures of ...alkanes, are also established as a commercial fuel. This review describes recent developments in FAME and HVO production and utilization, including microbial oil use. However, the use of unmodified plant oil as fuel or their corresponding engine and emission tests are not discussed. Recent developed catalysts are described for FAME production, including heterogeneous catalysts, such as super acids, ion‐exchange resins, and other green catalysts produced from biomass. Bio‐catalytic approaches using soluble or immobilized enzymes are at the early commercialization stage. Since HVO production technology is based mainly on current mineral oil industry processing methods, the scientific literature is not as extensive as that of FAME production. The main reaction routes of HVO are a combination of hydrogenation, decarboxylation, decarbonylation, hydroisomerization, and cracking under high pressure and temperatures, using supported and unsupported heterogeneous metal catalysts. Recent reports have highlighted the potential use of non‐food oils, such as microalgae lipids, but industrial significant progress has not occurred, leading to some disillusionment with this approach. Therefore, a clear strategy should be developed for upstream and downstream processes with parallel evaluation of life cycle assessment (LCA). In addition, energy intensive steps of biomass drying and solvent extraction should be avoided by using intelligent technologies, such as in situ processing of wet biomass. Biodiesel and hydrotreated vegetable oils today are the most important alternative diesel fuels in the transport sector. They are produced from the same feedstock, namely oil and fat containing biomass. There has been a shift from food sources to waste material like used cooking oil and animal fat residues as well microbial oils. The latest developments in new feedstock sources, process technologies as well as life cycle assessment and future perspectives are discussed.
Clinical trials have reported that a four-oil intravenous lipid emulsion (SMOFlipid) play a positive role in immune function, but showed inconsistent outcomes compared to other lipid emulsions. A ...systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the effect of SMOFlipid on liver function, triglycerides (TG), inflammatory markers, and clinical outcomes in hospitalized adults after short-term use compared to others. A search of the PubMed, Medline, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang databases was performed to identify the included randomized controlled trials. Trials with adults who were administrated a short-term course of SMOFlipid were included. A meta-analysis on liver function markers, TG, inflammatory markers, and clinical outcomes was conducted. A total of 18 randomized controlled trials with 1188 patients were included. Compared to other lipid emulsions, SMOFlipid was associated with a significant reduction in ALT, AST, γ-glutamyltransferase, total bilirubin, TG, C-reactive protein and length of hospital stay. No effect on serum interleukin-6 levels or adverse events were observed. For adult patients, our meta-analysis indicated that SMOFlipid may be beneficial to the liver and prone to prevent hyperlipidemia. The SMOFlipid also shortened length of hospital stay.