Meta-analysis of the influence of seasonality on the chemical composition of essential oils from Myrtaceae species

Abstract

Myrtaceae is one of the most important families in the Neotropics, with 23 genera and 990 species occurring in Brazil. Seasonal environmental changes can cause alterations in the secondary metabolism of plants and, consequently, in the chemical composition, yield and biological activity of essential oils. The aim of the present study was to determine the influence of seasonality on the chemical composition of essential oils from Myrtaceae species through the technique of meta-analysis. The articles were obtained from searches carried out in Journal Databases (Web Of Science, Scorpus and Science Direct) following the PRISMA protocol. The data that composed this study were binary data (presence or absence) of the influence of seasonality on the composition of essential oils of Myrtaceae species. The meta-analysis effect size was derived from the observational comparison of data obtained from the primary articles available in the literature, which was statistically relevant. The conclusion of the meta-analysis was that seasonality significantly influences the chemical composition of essential oils from Myrtaceae species. The heterogeneity test corroborate the results obtained in the meta-analysis. Determination of the influence of seasonality on the chemical composition of essential oils of Myrtaceae species, through the meta-analysis technique according to the PRISMA protocol for a systematic literature review. • The influence of seasonality on the chemical composition of essential oils from Myrtaceae species was investigated. • The PRISMA protocol methodology was used in the Systematic Literature Review to apply the meta-analysis technique. • Meta-analysis indicated that seasonality significantly influences the chemical composition of the oil of Myrtaceae species.