Violeta Slavkovska

Variability of essential oils of Satureja montana L. and Satureja kitaibelii Wierzb. ex Heuff. from the central part of the Balkan peninsula

The results of the essential oil composition confirm that there are differences between populations within the same subspecies (Satureja montana ssp. montana, between the subspecies (Satureja montana ssp. montana and Satureja montana ssp. pisidica) and the species (Satureja montana and S. kitabelii). The essential oil composition of S. montana ssp. montana is more related to the Satureja montana ssp. pisidica than S. kitaibelii which separates as a whole species.

Essential oil and its systematic significance in species of Micromeria Bentham from Serbia & Montenegro

The composition and quantity of the essential oil of Micromeria allowed us to clearly distinguish between sections Pseudomelissa and Eumicromeria. According to our results the species of section Pseudomelissa (M. thymifolia, M. albanica, M. dalmatica and M. pulegium) contained a large quantity of oil (>0.5%) dominated by oxygenated monoterpenes of the menthane type, while the species of section Eumicromeria (M. croatica, M. juliana, M. cristata and M. parviflora) had a small quantity of essential oil (<0.5%) dominated by various terpene compounds. 0.5% of essential oil is defined like boundary value on the basis of the lowest quantity of essential oil measured in populations of species of section Pseudomelissa.

Chaerophyllum coloratum L.: Essential Oils of Ripe Fruits and Umbels

ABSTRACT Essential oils of ripe fruits and umbels of Chaerophyllum coloraturn L. (Apiaceae) were found by GC and GC/MS to contain very high percentage of (E)-Pfarnesene (79.21% and 68.40% respectively).

Environment-related variations of the composition of the essential oils of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) in the Balkan Penninsula.

Composition of the essential oils of Rosmarinus officinalis of ten populations from the Balkan Peninsula were determined by GC/FID and GC/MS. The main constituents were 1,8‐cineole, camphor, α‐pinene, and borneol. Multivariate statistical analysis (UPGMA cluster analysis and principal‐component analysis (PCA)) revealed two major types of rosemary oil, i.e., 1,8‐cineole and camphor‐type, and two intermediate types, i.e., camphor/1,8‐cineole/borneol type and 1,8‐cineole/camphor type. The regression analyses (simple linear regression and stepwise multiple regression) have shown that, with respect to basic geographic, orographic, and 19 bioclimatic characteristics of each population, bioclimatic factor temperature of habitat represented the dominant abiogenetic factor, which, in chemical sense, led to differentiation of populations in the studied region. Also, the regression analysis have shown that some constituents of essential oils are independent of any single bioclimatic factors. However, some constituents display statistically significant correlations with some abiotic factors.

Environmental and Seasonal Impacts on the Chemical Composition of Satureja horvatii Silic¤ (Lamiaceae) Essential Oils

The chemical composition of the essential oils of Satureja horvatii Šilić from two natural habitats (Mt. Orjen and Mt. Lovćen in Montenegro) and from cultivated plants (Belgrade, Serbia) were characterized. For the latter, plants from the locus classicus, i.e., Orjenske Lokve (Mt. Orjen), were transferred to Belgrade and, after three years of cultivation, the chemical composition of their essential oils at different phenological stages was analyzed. The essential oils were obtained from the aerial parts of the plants by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The yields and chemical compositions of the S. horvatii oils showed significant differences between the plants collected in the natural habitats and those from cultivation, as well as between the plants at different phenological stages. In the populations from the natural habitats, growing in Mediterranean conditions, the most abundant oil constituents were the phenols thymol (63.7% in the samples from Mt. Orjen) or carvacrol (68.1% in the samples from Mt. Lovćen), while the oils from the cultivated plants (Belgrade), growing in continental conditions, were dominated by linalool (up to 65.8 and 55.9% in average). The basic characteristics of the essential oil from plants at the early phenological stage (before flowering) were high percentages of linalool (37.4%), thymol (27.3%), and carvacrol (12.2%). At the stage of flowering, the percentage of linalool (56.6–57.5%) increased, while those of thymol (15.5–15.8%) and carvacrol (1.4–1.5%) significantly decreased. The essential oil of plants in the full stage of fruiting was characterized by the domination of linalool (58.4 and 65.8%) and lower percentages of thymol (7.6 and 1.3%) and carvacrol (0.7 and 0.1%). In conclusion, the oil composition of S. horvatii was found to depend on the pedoclimatic conditions of the habitat and the phenological stage of the plants.

Essential Oil of Calamintha sylvatica Bromf. and Calamintha vardarensis Šilic

Abstract The essential oil of three populations of Calamintha sylvatica Bromf. native to the mountain region of southwestern Serbia and one population of Calamintha vardarensis Šilic from southern former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia were studied. The highest oil yields were found in C. vardarensis (1.54%), whereas in C. sylvatica oil yields varied from 0.11% up to 0.94%. In all samples, cis-piperitone oxide was a major compound. The highest percentage was found in the oil of C. vardarensis (65.6%). In C. sylvatica piperitone oxide varied from 48.9–59.2%. In the examined samples, oil composition appeared to vary more according to geographical rather than genetic factors.

Chemical Composition of the Essential Oil of the Species Artemisia eriantha Ten. (Asteraceae) from Yugoslavia

Abstract The essential oil of Artemisia eriantha Ten. (Asteraceae) from two localities on the mountain Durmitor in Montenegro (Yugoslavia) was studied using GC/MS. The oil yield was 0.7% and the major constituents were identified as α-thujone (77.5%, 60.4%) and β-thujone (17.6%, 14.6%), respectively.

Chemical composition of the essential oil of Thymus bracteosus vis. ex Bentham (Lamiaceae)

Abstract The oil composition of Thymus bracteosus Vis. ex Bentham, collected from Montenegro, was analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The oil yield was 0.15%. Twenty-seven components were identifed. Terpene hydrocarbons were dominant in the oil (68.5%). The main constituents of the oil were germacrene D (15.5%), β-caryophyllene (14.6%), p-cymene (10.2%) and α-pinene (7.2%).

Leaf and stem anatomy of Micromeria species from the Central part of the Balkan Peninsula

Abstract The anatomical structure of the leaf and stem of nine Micromeria species from the Balkan Peninsula was investigated with the aim to establish the adaptive characteristics and traits that could be useful in the identification of species and subgeneric classification. The species included in the anatomical analysis were:Micromeria albanica (Griseb. ex K. Malý) Šilić, M.thymifolia (Scop.) Fritch , M. pulegium (Rochel) Bentham, M. dalmatica Bentham of section Pseudomelissa and M. cristata (Hampe) Griseb., M. kosaninii Šilić, M. juliana (L.) Bentham ex Reichenb., M. croatica (Pers.) Schott M. parviflora (Vis.) Reichenb. of section Micromeria. Variability of 17 quantitative characters of the leaf (thickness, height of adaxial and abaxial epidermis, thickness of the palisade and spongy tissue) and stem (radius, cortex thickness, thickness of the vascular cylinder, phloem, xylem, pith radius) was examined. Multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA), principal component analysis (PCA), canonical discriminant analysis (CDA) and UPGMA clustering method based on Mahalanobis’ distances were used to determine the variability structure and level of importance of the anatomical differentiation of the investigated taxa. Qualitative characters were also included in the consideration of the anatomical variability, such as leaf shape, leaf margin, position of sclerenchyma fibers in the leaf and stem. The results showed that investigated Micromeria species posses a xeromorphic general structure plan, but each species has achieved distinctive adaptations according to its specific genetic potential. The results have shown a clear difference between the species belonging to the different sections of genus Micromeria, so they have a potential diagnostic and systematic value.