Changes in volatiles and essential oil composition of three organs (leaf, stem and flower) of purple basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) by GC–MS combined with multivariate statistical approach

Abstract

The paper describes volatile compounds (in the organs for flower, leaf and stem) and essential oil contents in fresh or dried purple basil Ocimum basilicum L. grown in Turkey by using polar (TRB-WAX) or non-polar (DB-5MS) gas-chromatographic columns. dl-Limonene, 1,8-cineole, linalool, β-elemene, (Z)-methyl cinnamate and (E)-methyl cinnamate were major compounds of dried or fresh basil samples in polar column, while 1,8-cineole, linalyl acetate, l-linalool, α-terpinolene and (Z)-methyl cinnamate were major compounds of dried or fresh basil samples in non-polar column. 2-Pentanone, 1-pentanol, acetoin and methyl decadienoate were the volatiles detected only in dried basil samples, while 2,3-pentadione, p-xylene, delta-3-carene and o-xylene were found only in fresh basil samples. Furthermore, 1,8-cineole, linalool and methyl cinnamate were found to be the potent volatile compounds in purple basil essential oil with regardless of column type. Significant differences were also observed in the volatile components by using polar or non-polar columns. In conclusion, the multivariate statistical analysis and heat mapping showed that the plant organs contained different volatiles, and drying process significantly affected its concentrations in purple basil and its essential oil. Flower of the basil showed a distinct volatile composition with regardless of drying process and this was confirmed by both statistical approaches.