Juniper Essential Oils Research Articles

Comparative repellency effect of three plant extracts on Paederus beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), the cause of linear dermatitis in Iran

ObjectiveTo investigate the repellent effect of neem, juniper and eucalyptus extracts as a form of protection against Paederus beetles, which are a cause of linear dermatitis in Iran. MethodsAfter collecting and extracting plant samples, the extracts were tested on Paederus beetles in three concentrations (2.5%, 5.0% and 10.0%) with direct method under laboratory conditions. The data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 20). ResultsThe results indicated that there was a significant difference between neem with juniper and eucalyptus at the 2.5% and 5.0% concentrations (P < 0.05), whereas there was a significant difference between all three extracts at the 10.0% concentration (P < 0.05). ConclusionsThis is the first report on the repellent effect of these three plant extracts on Paederus beetles. Neem oil appeared to have the largest effect on Paederus spp. and juniper essential oil exhibited the second highest repellency, followed by eucalyptus.

In vivo neurobiological activity of inhaled juniper essential oil

In vivo neurobiological activity of inhaled juniper essential oil

Disinfection action of some essential oils on stainless steel

Bacteria can attach to different surfaces and form biofilm. Biofilms can cause a big problem in food industry by contamination of food items and reduction of the effectiveness of machines. In the biofilm bacteria are less exposed to the different disinfectants, than the free living cells. Essential oils (EO) with known antimicrobial effect can also inhibit biofilm formation. In our experiments minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) and minimal bactericide concentrations (MBC) of the investigated EOs: cinnamon, juniper and lemon were determined by macro-dilution method on Pseudomonas putida and E.coli. Cinnamon showed the best antibacterial effect with MBC values of 2 mg/ml for E. coli and 4mg/ml forP.putida. Thebactericidaleffect of EOsdependedontheactingtime. We established 80 minutes for P. putida and 120 (cinnamon EO) and 240 (juniper EO) min forE. coli. The disinfection potential of the EOs were studied on P. putida and E. coli 1 and 7 days old biofilms formed on industrial stainless steel surfaces. Each of the EO was effective. The number of P. putida cells was reduced up to 99% and we had similar result by 1 day old E. coli biofilm. The cell number of 7 days old E. coli biofilm was reduced by 62.5% with cinnamon EO and juniper EO reduced it by 87%.

Effect of Foliar Application of Methyl Jasmonate and Extracts of Juniper and Sagebrush on Essential Oil Yield and Composition of ‘Native’ Spearmint

Spearmint (Mentha spicata L.) is a major essential oil crop in the United States. Developing means for increased biomass and oil yields and increased concentrations of carvone would be beneficial for the essential oil industry. A field experiment was conducted to study the effect of foliar application treatments [water (control), water + Tween20, sagebrush essential oil + Tween20, sagebrush water extract, juniper essential oil + Tween20, juniper water extract, and methyl jasmonate] on ‘Native’ spearmint essential oil content, shoot fresh weight, oil yield, and oil composition. The essential oil content was low in the water + Tween20 and in juniper essential oil (EO) + Tween20 treatments and high in the juniper water extract and in methyl jasmonate (MJ) treatments; however, neither of these were different from the water control or from the sagebrush EO + Tween20. Biomass fresh weight was lower in the sagebrush water extract (SWE) and in the juniper water extract (JWE) relative to the water control. The application of juniper EO + Tween20 reduced the concentration of carvone in the oil relative to the water control or to the water + Tween20 treatment. The sagebrush water extract, juniper EO + Tween20, juniper water extract, and MJ increased the concentrations of beta-caryophyllene relative to the water treatment. The concentration of trans-beta-farnesene was lower in the control water treatment and higher in all other treatments. Also, with the exception of sagebrush EO + Tween20, all treatments increased the concentration of germacrene D relative to the water control but not relative to water + Tween20. This study demonstrated that foliar application of sagebrush EO, sagebrush water extract, juniper EO, or juniper water extract to ‘Native’ spearmint may affect the essential oil profile of spearmint essential oil. Some of the treatments increased the concentrations of beta-caryophyllene, trans-beta-farnesene, and germacrene D in the essential oil; however, neither of the treatments increased the concentration of carvone, the main essential oil constituent of ‘Native’ spearmint oil.

English

Nowadays, the overdose use of antibiotics and the increase of microbial resistances have made researchers to carry out more studies about the new drugs with new chemical composition. In order to produce these new drugs, different species of special plants can be useful by scientists and researchers. Base on this, the leaves and fruits of Juniperus excelsa and Juniperus horizontalis were collected from Iranian National Botanic Garden. Essential oils were isolated by hydro-distillation method. The essential oil components were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The yields of the leaves and fruits of J. excelsa and J. horizontalis essential oils were 0/79 to 4/15% and 1/083 to 2/7%, respectively. There were 15 and 27 components in the essential oil of J. excelsa and J. horizontalis, respectively. The major compound in the essential oils obtained from the leaves and fruits of J. excelsa were α-pinene (79/95 and 89/49%, respectively). The main compound in the essential oils obtained from the leaves and fruits of J. horizontalis were sabinene (30/21 and 38%, respectively). In addition, bornyl acetate (10/66%) and delta-cadinene (3/79%) were identified as major components in the essential oil of the leaves obtained from J. horizontalis. Juniper essential oils were evaluated for the antibacterial activity against thirteen bacterial species by disk diffusion and micro dilution method. Juniper essential oils showed more antibacterial activities against Gram-positive as compared to Gram-negative bacteria species. The antibacterial activity of essential oils may be related to presence of α- pinene, limonene, and sabinene which are known to have antibacterial properties. Key words: Antibacterial activity, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS), essential oil, Juniperus excelsa, Juniperus horizontalis.

Evaluation of antimicrobial and phytochemical screening of Fennel, Juniper and Kalonji essential oils against multi drug resistant clinical isolates

ObjectiveThe inhibitory effects of essential oils including fennel, juniper and kalonji from Foeniculum Vulgare, Juniperus Osteosperma and Nigella Sativa on multi drug resistant clinical isolates were investigated. All the oils have been evaluated for phytochemical constituents, antibacterial activity and TLC bioautography assay. MethodsPreliminary phytochemical analysis was performed. The antibacterial potential of essential oils from fennel, juniper and kalonji fennel, juniper and kalonji was evaluated by agar well diffusion method against multi drug resistant clinical isolates. The antibacterial effect was investigated using the TLC-bioautographic method. ResultsPreliminary phytochemical analysis demonstrated the presence of most of the phytochemicals including saponins, cardiac glycosides, steroids, terpenoids, flavonoids and tannins. Antibacterial activity of essential oils was assessed on eight multi-drug resistant (MDR) clinical isolates from both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and two standard strains. All the oils tested showed significant to moderate antibacterial activity toward all tested strains except Acinetobacter sp and Staphylococcus aureus MRSA. The maximum zone of inhibition was found to be 25±0.12 mm for juniper oil followed by 21±0.085 mm for kalonji oil against Staphylococcus aureus 2. Thin layer chromatography and bioautography assay demonstrated well-defined growth inhibition zones against Staphylococcus aureus 2 and E. coli for juniper essential oil in correspondence with tannins observed at Rf values of 0.07 and 0.57. ConclusionsBased on the present study, the essential oils from juniper and kalonji possess antibacterial activity against several multi drug resistant pathogenic bacteria and thus can be used as a base for the development of new potent drugs and phytomedicine.

The effects of dietary consumption of plants secondary compounds on small ruminants’ products quality

Worldwide policies are encouraging the use of natural rangelands and low input feeding resources for livestock farming. Most of the low input feed contain secondary compounds (PSCs) – such as phenolic compounds (PhCs), saponins, and essential oils (EO) – which play a primary role on animal digestion and performances and also on product quality. Meat and milk fatty acid composition can be manipulated by dietary tannins as these PSCs modify ruminal biohydrogenation of dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids through changes in ruminal ecology. Dietary tannins improve products’ flavour by reducing the ruminal biosynthesis of skatole and its accumulation in meat and milk. The addition of garlic or juniper EO in lamb diets reduces the off-flavours perception while thyme or rosemary EO lowered the rancid-odour perception of meat under display. It is proved that dietary PhCs ameliorate meat oxidative stability and prevent meat from discoloration thus extending product shelf life. The dose–response effect of these PSCs as well as their mechanisms of action are not fully unravelled. Nevertheless, the use of plants rich in secondary compounds or the supplementation of purified PSCs in small ruminants diet seem to be a promising strategy for improving products quality.

Influence of the Process, Season, and Origin on Volatile Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Juniperus phoenicea L. Leaves Essential Oils

Essential oils of Juniperus phoenicea L. leaves cultivated in 3 regions, Korbos, Matmata, and Tabarka of Tunisia were obtained by hydrodistillation (HD), steam distillation (SD), and Soxhlet (SH) extraction methods. The essential oils were analyzed and quantified by capillary gas chromatography using flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The highest yield was observed in HD process (1.12%). Tabarka essential oil provided the best yield 0.79% compared to other regions. December month SD essential oil was the highest in oxygenated monoterpenes (52.7%). Nevertheless, SH essential oil showed a higher content in sesquitepenes hydrocarbons (64.5%). α-Terpinol (25.5%) was the main oxygenated component in Matmata juniper essential oil, extracted by SD. Moreover, the antioxidant activity of essential oils was evaluated using ABTS assays. The strongest antioxidant activity (IC(50) = 22.6 ± 0.7 mg/L) was obtained by the Matmata (October 2007) SD essential oil.

Chemical composition of berry essential oils from Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) growing wild in Republic of Macedonia and assessment of the chemical composition in accordance to European Pharmacopoeia

Chemical composition of fifteen samples of juniper essential oil was analyzed using GC/FID/MS method. Thirteen samples of berries were collected on different locations in south-western part , two of them in central-north region of Republic of Macedonia. The essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation in a Clevenger type apparatus using official method of European Pharmacopoeia. GC/MS analysis revealed 74 identified components. The predominant fractions of the oils were monoterpene hydrocarbons representing 39.11- 73.38%. Great variability in the chemical composition and content of some components was observed. The most variable components were α-pinene (15.59-43.19%), β-pinene (1.65%-5.35%), β-myrcene (2.89%-26.50%), sabinene (2.80-11.77%), and limonene (2.90-4.46%). In the fraction of oxidized monoterpenes the most abundant was terpene-4-ol (trace - 6.32%) followed by α-terpineol (0.18-1.63%). In the sesquiterpene fraction predominant components were: germacrene D (2.76-10.22%), β-elemene (1.13-3.40%) and trans-(E)-caryophyllene (1.8%- 4.05%). Twelve samples of Macedonian juniper oils comply with European Pharmacopoeia chemical composition requirements for juniper oil and three samples did not, due to lower amount of α-pinene.

The effect of flavour on the growth and feed utilisation of broiler chicks

Synopsis The results of four experiments testing the effect of a flavour made up of ethyl butyrate and other esters, phenylacetic acid and other organic acids, oil of juniper and other essential oils, diacetyl, and maltol on the feed utilisation and growth of broiler chicks to 8 weeks of age have shown small but consistent improvements in feed conversion. This improvement was significant (P>0.05) when the 8‐week results of the four tests were pooled, but were not significant when tested within each experiment. The 4‐week results of the combined experiments indicated a highly significant (P<0.01) improvement in feed utilisation following the use of the flavour.