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viridis Linn.) and Menthu x cardiar: a (Labiatae).T he BP oil is preparedb y steamd istillation and should contarinn ot lesst han5 5cloo f carvone,2 -25a/oli monenew ith upperl imits fbr a numbero f other constituentsa s determinedb y gasc hromatography. Most of the commercial oil is plepared in North America. Characters. Mint has more or lessc rumpled,o pposite,o vate-lanceolatel eaves3, 7 cm long.T he apexi s acuteo l acuminatea, ndt he margin unequally serrate.T he leavesd ilTerf rom thoseo fpeppermint in that they are almost sessile and have a bright green colour free fiom purple. Constituents. Oil of spearrnintc ontains( -)-carvone, (-)-lin.ronene, phellandrenea nd estersA. s with M. x piperita limonenei s the precursoro f the monoterpenoidas ndi n this caset he actiono f a (-)-limonene6-hydroxylase predominates to give the alcohol (-)-/rans-carveol which is oxidized to carvone (Fie. 23.,1) Dihvdrocarvone is formed later in the season and is absent liorn plantlets produced by shoot-tip cuiture.A gain like pepperrrint.o il prodr.rctioins influencedb y the age of plant, time of collection, chemical varieties and hybridization.
SAGE IEAF The ofTicial drug consists of whole or cut leaves of Salvia o.ffic'inuLis (Labiatae)c ontainingn ot lessr han 1.5%( whole leaf) or 1.jc/c( cut leaf) of essentiaol il which is determinedb y steamd istillation.T he plant is indigenoust o Mediterraneana reasb ut is now cultivatedw orld-wide. principally for its use as a culinary herb. Macroscopical characters. The petiolateo blong-lanceolatele aves areu p to 10 cm lengtha nd 2 cm in breadth,g reenish-greyo n the upper surface and tomentose on the lower with a markedly reticulate venation. The leaf apex is lounded, the base rounded or cordate and the margin crenulateT. he odour and tastea rec haracteristicallyp ungent. Microscopical characters. The upper epidermal cells have beaded anticlinal walls, the lower ones are thin-walled and sinuous; both epidelmi possess diacytic stomata. Glandular trichomes of the typical labiatet ype occur on both surtacesw ith rarer uniseriateg landulart richomesh aving a double-o r single-celledh ead.C lothing trichomesa re numerous! particularly on the lower surface, composed ol a short thickenedb asalc ell with articulateda nd bent terminalc ells.A few singlecelledw arty-walledt richomesa rep resent.T he long protectivet richomes serve to distinguish S. officinalis liom S. sclareu and S. pratensis( M. Thene t aL.A, cta Pharm.H ung.,1998,63,1 63). Constituents. The volatile oil of sage contains about 50% of a- and Bthujonet ogetherw ith cineole,b omeola ndo therc onstituent(sF ig. 23.2).
Varieties and other species of sage contain differing amounts of thujone. Non-volatile components of the leaf include diterpenes, phenolic glycosides based on caffeic and p-hydroxybenzoic acids (fbr recent isolationss eeM . Wange t aL..J . Nat. Prod., 1999,62,454),a ndt annins. Action and uses. Sage as an infusion is used as a nouthwash and garg1e for its antiseptic and astringent action. Recent attention has fbcused on the cholinergic activity of the drug and its possible role in the treatmento fAlzheimer'sd iseasea ndm emoryl oss.I t is interestingto notet hat long before recenta dvancesin the understandingo f the neurobiolo-eyo f Alzheimer'sd iseasep, lant materialsi ncluding sagea nd balm (Mellssa oJficinalis'\ were recornmended in old ref'erence books as possessing memory-improving properties (see E. K. Perry et ul., J. Phann. Pharmttcol., 1999, 51, 527). The phenolic glycosides of sage together with those of MeLissa olJtcinalis and Lot,tuttlulu Llngustifoliu possess antioxidanpt roperlies(J .H ohmanne t al., PlantaM edica,1999,65.5 76).
The mesocarpc onsistso f more or lessc ollapsedp arenchymaa ndl acks the reticulated cells of fennel. The endodermis (or inner epidermis of the pericarp) (Fig. 23.5F) consists ol a single layer of elongared cells,a rrangedm ore or lessp arallelt o one anothera ndn ot showingt he 'parquetry'a rrangemenot f coriander. Constituents. Caraway contains 3-1Vc of volatile oils (BP not less than 3.0%), 8-207o of fixed oil, proteins, calcium oxalate, colouring matter and resin. The volatile oil (CarawayO il BP) consistso f the ketonec arvonea nd the terpene limonene (fbrmulae, Fig. 23.4) with srrall quantities of dihydrocarvonec. arveola nd dihydrocarveol;it is assayedfo r ketone Fol the biogenesis of carvone
see 'Menthu spicuto'. As there is a demand for pule carvone, there is a considerable amount of decarvonized oil available for adulteration. Uses. Largeq uantitieso f carawayf 'r-r.riatsre u sedf br culinary puryoses. The fiuits and oil are used in medicine fbr flavouring and as carminatives. The carminative and antispasmodic properties have been experimentallvye rified.