Abstract
Many plant species produce mixtures of odorous and volatile compounds known as essential oils (EOs). These mixtures play important roles in Nature and have been utilized by mankind for different purposes, such as pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, aromatherapy, and food flavorants. There are more than 3000 EOs reported in the literature, with approximately 300 in commercial use, including the EOs from Eucalyptus species. Most EOs from Eucalyptus species are rich in monoterpenes and many have found applications in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, food flavorants, and perfumes. Such applications are related to their diverse biological and organoleptic properties. In this study, we review the latest information concerning the chemical composition and biological activities of EOs from different species of Eucalyptus. Among the 900 species and subspecies of the Eucalyptus genus, we examined 68 species. The studies associated with these species were conducted in 27 countries. We have focused on the antimicrobial, acaricidal, insecticidal and herbicidal activities, hoping that such information will contribute to the development of research in this field. It is also intended that the information described in this study can be useful in the rationalization of the use of Eucalyptus EOs as components for pharmaceutical and agrochemical applications as well as food preservatives and flavorants.
Highlights
Nature is a precious reservoir of substances that can be explored for developing new pharmaceuticals
Considering the versatility of Eucalyptus essential oils (EOs) in terms of bioactivities as well as their industrial importance, the purpose of this study is to provide the readers with the latest information concerning the chemical composition and biological activities of EOs from different species of Eucalyptus
Since the chemical composition of the Eucalyptus EOs is directly associated with their biological activities, the following discussion will be focused on such activities and on the multiple applications of such EOs
Summary
Nature is a precious reservoir of substances that can be explored for developing new pharmaceuticals. There are a large number of plant species, only approximately 10% produce mixtures of odorous and volatile compounds, collectively called essential or volatile oils [14]. EOs are known to be involved in allelopathic interactions inhibiting seed germination and plant growth [25,26,27,28] These properties have been investigated for the development of herbicides [29,30,31]. Eucalyptus trees have perennial leaves that are odorous because of the presence of EOs that are produced and stored in secretory cells These EOs are aromatic, spicy, and colorless or pale yellow, there are studies that have reported the color as being brownish or greenish [44]. The information described can be useful in the rationalization of the use of Eucalyptus EOs as source of constituents for pharmaceutical and agrochemical applications as well as food preservatives
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