Juniper Berry Oil Research Articles

Antibacterial and antifungal activity of juniper berry oil and its selected components.

Juniper berry oil is stated to possess a wide spectrum of pharmacological activities and its monographs are included in some National Pharmacopoeias. The antibacterial and antifungal activity of the oil was reported by some authors. In our study we estimated the antibacterial and antifungal activity of three different juniper berry oils and their main components. All the micro-organisms used in this experiment were isolated from patients of Regional Hospital of Gdańsk and some of them showed resistance against commonly used antibiotics. Only one of the oils (labelled A) revealed good antimicrobial properties. None of the single oil components was a stronger antibacterial and antifungal inhibitor than the oil A itself. Our data suggest that the antimicrobial activity of juniper oil A is the result of either the specific composition of the oil A (highest concentration of (-)-alpha-pinene, p-cymene and beta-pinene) or activity of a single non-identified compound. The presence of an adulterant in the oil was excluded.

Dietary juniper berry oil minimizes hepatic reperfusion injury in the rat.

Juniper berry oil is rich in 5,11,14-eicosatrienoic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid similar to one found in fish oil, yet less prone to peroxidation. Dietary fish oil treatment has been shown to effectively reduce reperfusion injury; therefore, the effects of a diet containing juniper berry oil on hepatic reperfusion injury in a low-flow, reflow reperfusion model were investigated in the rat. Rats were fed semisynthetic diets containing either juniper berry oil, fish oil, or corn oil for 14 to 16 days. Daily food consumption averaged around 20 g/d in both the control and treatment groups; average daily weight gain was around 4 g per 100 g rat weight in all three groups studied, and there were no significant differences in these parameters. Livers were initially perfused at low-flow rates to induce pericentral hypoxia followed by a 40-minute reperfusion period. Peak lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release during reflow averaged 44 U/g/h in the corn oil group and 32 U/g/h in the fish oil group, but was only 21 U/g/h as a result of juniper berry oil treatment. Malondialdehyde (MDA), an end-product of lipid peroxidation, reached a maximum value of 62 nmol/g/h in the corn oil group, but only reached 43 nmol/g/h and 34 nmol/g/h in the fish oil and juniper berry oil groups, respectively. Both juniper berry oil and fish oil treatment improved rates of bile flow from 25 microL/g/h (corn oil) to 36 and 38 microL/g/h, respectively. Importantly, juniper berry oil reduced cell death in pericentral regions of the liver lobule by 75%. Trypan blue distribution time, an indicator of the hepatic microcirculation, was reduced by approximately 25% with fish oil and over 50% by juniper berry oil diets compared with corn oil controls. The rates of entry of fluorescein-dextran, a dye confined to the vascular space, were increased 1.8- and 2.6-fold, and rates of outflow were increased 4.4- and 4.3-fold by fish oil and juniper berry oil, respectively, also reflecting improved microcirculation. Juniper berry oil also blunted increases in intracellular calcium and release of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) by cultured Kupffer cells stimulated by endotoxin. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that feeding a diet containing juniper berry oil reduces reperfusion injury by inhibiting activation of Kupffer cells, thus reducing vasoactive eicosanoid release and improving the hepatic microcirculation in livers undergoing oxidant stress.

Further studies on inhibitory effects of juniper berry oils on ethanol fermentation

The inhibitory effect of juniper berry oil on ethanol fermentation by Bakers' yeast is shown. The higher the amount of the juniper berry oil, the more intensive is the inhibition. The lag time and the duration of the ethanol fermentation are considerably extended, sugar utilization and ethanol production are retarded, while organic acid formation is increased in the presence of the juniper berry oil.

Inhibitory effects of juniper berry oils on ethanol fermentation of juniper berries

The present paper deals with the effect of juniper berries, both before and after removal of the essential oil, on ethanol fermentation of juniper berry sugars. Inhibitory effects of juniper berry oils on ethanol fermentation are shown. The ethanol yield is considerably higher and the duration of ethanol fermentation is much shorter if the juniper berry oil is removed before the fermentation.

Juniper berry oil

Juniper berry oil

Site Preference and Oviposition of Tetranychus urticae (Acarina: Tetranychidae) on Bean with Innocuous Chemicals and Pesticides

A method is described to test individually and in combination the effects of different chemicals on the adult survival and oviposition of Tetranychus urticae Koch. Materials in water formulations were sprayed on the leaves of Vicia faba L. and tests with 5 females on excised leaves lasted for one day. Various spray adjuvants acted as ovipositional repellents but did not reduce oviposition when only treated foliage was available. S. M. 134 killed adults and prevented oviposition. The most effective innocuous materials are: Aerosil 200, oleoresin of capsicum, extract of juniper berry, levulinic acid, pumpkin and rapeseed oils, sinigrin, sodium silicate, and thiodiglycol. A 0.03% carbaryl:0.27% Arogen® 500 combination had no effect, whereas a combination with 0.06%:0.54% of these components respectively reduced adult survival and oviposition; a 0.05% formulation of phosmet had no effect, whereas a 0.05% phosmet:0.45% Zeolex® 100 combination reduced adult survival and oviposition; and a 0.1% pirimiphos-methyl:0.9% Arogen® 500 combination was less effective than 0.05% of Pirimiphos-methyl alone and about equal to a 0.05% Pirimiphos-methyl:0.45% Arogen® 500 combination. The effectiveness of pesticide-silica combinations depends on the concentration of components and type of silica.

The Constituents of Essential Oils. I. Juniper Berry Oil

日本産ねず(Juniperus rigida Sieb et Zucc.)の毬果から得た精油,イタリア産杜松実(Juniperus Communis L.)から得た精油,および市販の2種類のジュニパーベリー油についてそれらの成分をそれぞれ検索した。日本産ねずの精油から,α-ピネン(36・3%),ミルセン(12.9%),Δ3-カレン(0.8%),リモネン(1.6%),p-シメン(0.9%),β-エレメン(2.0%),カリオフイレン(0.4%),フムレン(0.4%),γ-カジネン(0.2%)aテルピネン-4-オール(0.02%),ボルネオールとシトロネロールの混合物(0.20%),主成分酢酸ボルニルのほかに酢酸テルピニルと酢酸シトロネリルとを含む混合物(0・13%),アネトール(0.05%),推定沸点229℃の未知不飽和炭化水素(0.68%)をそれぞれ分離し,さらに未確認セスキテルペン炭化水素4種類の存在をみとめた。また上記外国産の3種類の精油について,サビネン,カンフェン,α-テルピネン。γ-テルピネン,テルピノーレン,α-テルピネオール,カプリル酸エチル,およびbp223°～225℃の未知不飽和炭化水素の存在を確認した。

Diuretic substance from juniper (Juniperus communis L.)

It has been demonstrated that terpinenol-4, contained in juniper-berry oil, has a marked diuretic effect. On the basis of this finding, it is assumed that this substance is the proper diuretic factor of juniper-berries.