FLAVOUR AND FRAGRANCE JOURNAL

Flavour Fragr. J. 2001; 16: 337–339

DOI: 10.1002/ffj.1006

Analysis of the essential oil of Artemisia campestris L.

Ahmed Akrout,1Ł Rachid Chemli,2 Imed Chreı̈f3 and Mohamed Hammami3
1 Institut des Régions Arides, Laboratoire Eau–Sol–Végétaux, 4119 Medenine, Tunisia
2 Faculté de Pharmacie, Laboratoire de Pharmacognosie, 5000 Monastir, Tunisia
3 Faculté de Médecine, Département de Biochimie, Laboratoire USCR/SM, 5010 Monastir, Tunisia

Received 20 November 2000

Revised 12 February 2001
Accepted 26 March 2001

ABSTRACT: The composition of the essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of several
populations of Artemisia campestris L. (Asteraceae), collected from four areas of south-eastern of Tunisia
(Bengardane, Benikhdache, Jerba and Tataouine), was analysed by GC–MS. Thirteen to fifteen components
were identified in each sample, representing more than 95% of the total oil. All samples were dominated by
the presence of ˇ-pinene (24.2–27.9%), p-cymene (17.4–22.3%) and ˛-pinene (4.1–11.0%), representing more
than 45% of the total oil. The distribution of other components in the different extracts was qualitatively and
quantitatively irregular. The variability of the composition can be attributed to the climatic and geographical
conditions among areas. Copyright  2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
KEY WORDS: Artemisia campestris; Asteraceae; essential oil, ˇ-pinene; p-cymene

Introduction seed production stage in November 1996 (about

Artemisia campestris L. (Asteraceae) is widespread in
the south of Tunisia. The leaves of this plant are widely
used in traditional medicine as a decoction for their
antivenom, anti-inflammatory, antirheumatic and antimi-
crobial activities.1 A. campestris has be shown to have
allelochemical properties by inhibiting the growth and
the germination of some herbal species surrounding
it.2 The main components of the leaves essential oil
from Turkish A. campestris were ˛-pinene and ˇ-pinene
(21%), eucalyptol (8%), L-thujone (4%), thujyl alcohol
(15%), geraniol (13%) and an unknown component
(11%).3 The hexane extract of the leaves of Spanish A.
campestris was found to contain phytol, spathulenol, ˇ-
eudesmol, cryptomeridiol and oplaponone.4 The essen-
tial oil of the Italian A. campestris was shown to be
mainly composed of ˛-pinene (15.3%), ˇ-pinene (9.8%),
caryophllene oxide (18.2%), spathulenol (9.3%), limon-
ene (4.9%), dehydro-1,8-cineole (5.2%).5 This paper
reports the first study of the essential oil of A. campestris
collected from four areas of Tunisia.
Experimental
Plant Material
Aerial parts of A. campestris (Asteraceae), identified
by A. Ferchichi, were collected randomly at the
*Correspondence to: A. Akrout, Institut des Régions Arides, Labora-
toire Eau–Sol–Végétaux, 4119 Medenine, Tunisia.
E-mail: Ahmed.Akrout@ira.rnrt.tn
50 plants were harvested and grouped together to
constitute the sample for study) in four areas of south-
eastern Tunisia (Bengardane, Benikhdache, Jerba and
Tataouine).
The collected plant samples were air-dried for 10–12
days. The leaves were then separated from the stems
and used for essential oil isolation. Voucher specimens of
each sample have been deposited in the Herbarium of the
Institut des Regions Arides in Medenine, Tunisia, under
the numbers Bg11/96, Bk11/96, Je11/96 and Ta11/96,
respectively.
Essential Oil Analyses
The essential oils were separately obtained from 200 g
of the air-dried leaves by hydrodistillation for 5 h in
1200 ml distilled water, using the apparatus described in
the 9th edition of the French Pharmacopeia and cited by
Moyse.6 The composition of the essential oil was inves-
tigated by GC and GC–MS. The quantification of essen-
tial oil components was carried out by GC analysis using
a HP 5890 gas chromatograph apparatus equipped with
a DB-5, 0.2 mm i.d. ð 25 m, 0.25 µm coating thickness,
fused silica capillary column. The oven temperature was
programmed from 50 ° C to 240 ° C at 5 ° C/min. The oper-
ating temperature for the injector was 220 ° C. The carrier
gas was helium at a flow rate of 1 ml/min. The volume
injected was 0.1 µl 10% solution (diluted in hexane).
The relative amounts of the individual components are
based on the peak areas obtained, without FID response
factor correction. The identification of the essential oil

Copyright  2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

338 A. AKROUT ET AL.

components was performed by GC–MS analysis, using
a HP 5890 gas chromatograph coupled to a HP 5972
mass spectrometer under the same conditions as in GC
analysis but using a 30 m DB-5 column. Mass spectra
were recorded at 70 eV. The oil components were iden-
tified by comparison of their retention indices (relative
to C9 –C28 alkanes on the DB-5 column) and mass spec-
tra with those of authentic standards of a mass spectra
library (NBS library).7
Results and Discussion
The yield (v/w) of the essential oil from the air-dried
leaves of A. campestris was 0.65% and it was similar
for the four areas. Twenty compounds, representing more
than 95% of the total oil, were identified (Table 1).
Monoterpene hydrocarbons (47.8–63.8%) were shown
to be the main group of constituents in all sam-
ples. In this fraction, ˇ-pinene (24.2–27.9%), p-cymene
(17.4–22.3%) and ˛-pinene (4.1–11.0%), which were
present in all samples, represented more than 47% of
the total oil. Besides these three components, the sam-
ple from Benikhdache was also found to be contain
-terpinene (5.0%) and (Z)-ˇ-ocimene (4.5%).
The oxygen-containing monoterpenes were present in
relatively low amounts (4.6–17.7%). Camphor (10.3%)
was the main component of this fraction but it was only
present in the sample from Bengardane. The sample from
Benikhdache was free of geranyl acetate.
The sesquiterpene hydrocarbons ranged from 16%
(Bengardane) to 21% (Benikhdache). In this fraction,
υ-cadinene (2.1–2.7%), ˛-copaene (1.5–2.5%) and (Z)-
ˇ-farnesene (2.9–4.2%) were present in all samples. -
Muurolene (9.6%) was the most abundant component
but it was only found in the sample from Benikhdache.
˛-Cubebene (6.6%) and valencene (2.6%) were spe-
cific to the sample from Bengardane, whereas (ar)-
Curcumene (6.8–6.9%) was only present in the samples
from Jerba and Tataouine.
Spathulenol (7.1–10.0%) and ˇ-eudesmol (4.4–6.5%)
were the main oxygen-containing sesquiterpenes.
Spathulenol was absent in the sample from Benikhdache
but it was the most abundant component of this group
in the other samples.
The composition of the essential oil of A. campestris
differs, depending on where it is grown. The presence or
absence of some components makes it possible to deter-
mine the origin of the oil. Therefore, the sample from
Bengardane was characterized by the presence of cam-
phor (10.3%), ˛-cubebene (6.6%) and valencene (2.6%),
whereas the sample from Benikhdache was distinguished
by the presence of -muurolene (9.6%) and -terpinene
(5.0%).
The difference of the oil composition among areas,
which can affect the biological activities and pharma-
ceutical uses, could be due to either chemotypes or
to differences in the climatic and geographical con-
ditions (temperature, rainfall, altitude, wind direction,

Table 1. Composition of the essential oil of Artemisia campestris L. collected from different areas in Tunisia
Location
Components IR Bengardane Benikhdache Jerba Tataouine
˛-Pinene 938 6.2 4.1 11.0 8.7
ˇ-Pinene 980 24.2 27.9 25.2 24.3
p-Cymene 1026 17.4 22.3 20.7 20.1
(Z)-ˇ-Ocimene 1040 0.0 4.5 0.0 2.2
-Terpinene 1062 0.0 5.0 0.0 0.0
Camphor 1144 10.3 0.0 0.0 0.0
Terpinen-4-ol 1178 1.7 2.1 2.2 1.9
˛-Terpineol 1189 2.0 2.5 3.3 2.9
˛-Cubebene 1350 6.6 0.0 0.0 0.0
˛-Copaene 1377 1.5 2.5 2.0 1.9
ˇ-Gurjunene 1432 1.4 2.3 1.3 0.0
(Z)-ˇ-Farnesene 1443 2.9 4.2 3.2 3.6
-Muurolene 1477 0.0 9.6 0.0 0.0
(ar)-Curcumene 1483 0.0 0.0 6.9 6.8
Valencene 1491 2.6 0.0 0.0 0.0
˛-Muurolene 1499 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.4
υ-Cadinene 1524 2.7 2.1 2.2 2.5
Spathulenol 1576 10.0 0.0 7.1 8.5
Geranyl acetate 1384 3.7 0.0 5.0 3.9
ˇ-Eudesmol 1649 4.8 6.0 4.4 6.5
Sum of monoterpenes 65.6 68.4 67.5 63.9
Sum of monoterpene hydrocarbons 47.8 63.8 57.0 55.3
Sum of oxygen-containing monoterpenes 17.8 4.6 10.5 8.6
Sum of sesquiterpenes 32.4 26.6 27.1 32.1
Sum of sesquiterpenes hydrocarbons 17.6 20.6 15.6 17.1
Sum of oxygen-containing sesquiterpenes 14.8 6.0 11.4 15
Total identified 98.0 95.0 94.6 96.0

Copyright  2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Flavour Fragr. J. 2001; 16: 337–339

hours of sunshine, etc.). The majority of monoter-
penes and sesquiterpenes (˛-pinene, ˇ-pinene, spathu-
lenol, ˇ-eudesmol, etc.) in the Tunisian essential oil of
A. campestris have been previously found in the essential
oil of A. campestris from other countries.3 – 5 The pres-
ence of high concentrations of p-cymene (17.4–22.3%)
and ˇ-pinene (24.3–27.9%) and some specific compo-
nents (camphor, geranyl acetate, etc.) in the Tunisian
oil, and the variation of its composition among different
parts of Tunisia, suggest that different chemotypes of A.
campestris exist in Tunisia.
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Flavour Fragr. J. 2001; 16: 337–339