Analysis of the volatile constituents of Frangula alnus Mill. from Iran

Abstract

For the first time, the essential oil from the bark of Frangula alnus Mill. was extracted using the hydrodistillation method and examined by gas chromatography equipped with a flame ionization detector and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Thirty-one compounds were identified, constituting approximately 94.2% of the oil of F. alnus. The essential oil of F. alnus is rich in oxygenated monoterpenes and oxygenated sesquiterpenes (28.0 and 35.8% of the essential oil, respectively). Nine oxygenated monoterpene and six oxygenated sesquiterpene compounds were identified. The essential oil of F. alnus contains epoxygeranial (6.0%) and geranial (5.5%) (as main oxygenated monoterpenes) and also caryophyllene oxide (17.7%) and spathulenol (11.3) (as main oxygenated sesquiterpenes). Since the essential oil of F. alnus is rich in caryophyllene oxide, it can be used as a preservative in food, drugs, and cosmetics. Importantly, the high content of spathulenol makes the essential oil of F. alnus a good candidate for combination chemotherapy of the multidrug resistance cancer. Spathulenol highly promotes the accumulation of rhodamine123 (substrate of the ATP-binding cassette sub-family B member 1 (ABCB1)) by the multidrug resistance cells, which over-expresses the ABCB1 efflux pump.