English

Abstract

Leonotis nepetifolia (L.) R. Br. is an African bush that belongs to the Lamiaceae family which was introduced as ornamental plant in all the continents. In Brazil, the plant is known as “cordao de sao francisco” or “cordao de frade”. The plant has a traditional use in folk medicine for the treatment of some human diseases. In this study, it was realized for the first time, the extraction and characterization by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) of the fixed oils from the leaves of specimens of L. nepetifolia collected in wild and cultivated environments. The esters were identified by comparing the mass spectra obtained with those of the equipment database. In the fixed oil of the wild specimen were identified 16 compounds, totaling 95.13%. Methyl linoleate (46.98%) was the majoritary compound. For the sample of cultivated fixed oil, 21 compounds were identified, representing 88.76%. Among these, two pairs of isomers, propanoic acid 2-​methyl-3-​hydroxy-​2,​4,​4-​trimethylpentyl ester (31.97%) and propanoic acid 2-​methyl-2,​2-​dimethyl-1-​(2-​hydroxy-​1-​methylethyl)​-propyl ester (22.78%) reported here for the first time for this species, were identified as majoritary constituents. The results support the affirmation that the environment can modify the metabolic reply of plant specimens. Key words: Leonotis nepetifolia, fixed oils, environments, esters, Caatinga.