Characterization of the essential oil from cone-berries of Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae)

From Botanical to Medical Research Vol. 63 No. 3 2017 DOI: 10.1515/hepo-2017-0018 Review paper Characterization of the essential oil from cone-berries of Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) EWA MAJEWSKA*, MARIOLA KOZŁOWSKA, DOROTA KOWALSKA, ELIZA GRUCZYŃSKA Warsaw University of Life Sciences – SGGW Faculty of Food Sciences Departament of Chemistry Nowoursynowska 159c 02-776 Warsaw, Poland *corresponding author: phone: +48 22 59 376 12, fax: +48 22 59 37 635, e-mail: Summary Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) is a plant widely cultivated in the Northern hemisphere. Juniper berries, the fruit of Juniperus communis L. are a highly valued, essential oil-rich plant material used traditionally in folk medicine as antiseptic, diuretic, antirheumatic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antifungicidal agent. This paper reviews information on extraction methods of the essential oil from the juniper berries, its chemical composition and antimicrobial as well as antioxidant properties. Key words: Juniperus communis L., essential oils, Juniperi pseudofructus INTRODUCTION Juniperus L. (consisting of approximately 70 species and 40 varieties) is the second most diverse genus of the conifers. The genus is divided into three sections, and one of them is Juniperus (syn: sect. Oxycedrus Spach), containing 12 species. Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae Rich. ex Bartl.), a highly variable taxon distributed in Northern hemisphere (including Baltic Sea region), has the largest distribution of all juniper species. The cone-berries of J. communis (known as Juniperi pseudofructus) are used since ancient times in folk medicine to cure cystitis, digestive disorders, in therapy of chronicle arthritis and other indications. The berries contain essential oil with characteristic conifer-like aroma and bitterly taste. Many constituents present in juniper essential oil are responsible for the oil biological properties. Antibacterial and antifungal properties of the essential oils as well as of oil constituents are well documented [1]. Essential oil or some of its constituents have found application as antimicrobial agents for food preservatives, in clinical microbiology or in pharmaceutical preparations. The juniper essential oil is used in many Herba Pol 2017; 63(3): 48-55 49 Characterization of the essential oil from cone-berries of Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) industries, for example in food industry to flavor alcohols such as gin or in production of blended teas. The health benefits of juniper essential oil can be attributed to its properties as an antiseptic, sudorific, antirheumatic, depurative, antispasmodic, stimulating, stomachic, astringent, carminative, diuretic, rubefacient, vulnerary and tonic substance. Commercial juniper berry essential oil is rarely a true distillate from berries and may be a by-product from gin or brandy manufacture. In addition to berries, also branches, needles and wood of juniper contain essential oils. Juniper needles contain 0.2– 1.0% of volatile oil. Oil yield depends on the degree of ripeness, seasonal variations, environmental conditions (temperature, sunlight, photoperiod), age of plant latitude and altitude of growing site, a role in selective browsing damage by local herbivores and other factors. The average yield of the essential oil varies from 0.47 to 0.75% in dried needle with young juniper branches and 0.1–0.28% in dried branches according to the month of collection [2, 3]. The most significant changes in the content of the oil were found in spring–summer period of vegetation. There is no monograph concerning juniper needles or branches in European Pharmacopoeia (EP) [4], but the monograph of Juniperi pseudofructus describes them as the ripe cone-berry of J. communis L., which may not contain less than 10 ml/kg of essential oil. The amount of the essential oil can be up to 3%. Botanical aspects J. communis is an evergreen, perennial, long-lived (to 600 years or more) coniferous plant having the largest range of any woody plant in the cool temperate geographical regions of Northern Hemisphere, from the southern part of the Arctic, in mountains, to around a latitude of 30˚ north in Europe, Asia and North America. J. communis is a globally distributed species exhibiting a wide range of ecological adaptations. A wide geographical distribution is the main reason for the remarkable variation in the morphological characteristics and chemical composition of the secondary metabolites of J. communis [5]. J. communis has green and sharp leaves (needles) in whorls of a three; the leaves remain on the branch for up to 4 years. J. communis is a dioecious species: male and female cones grow on separate wind-pollinated plants. The plant blooms in April–May, however the cones of J. communis maturation time is late autumn of the second year. Therefore, the unripe second year and ripe third year berries may be collected from the same plant simultaneously. The spherical cones are berry-like, blue-black with a waxy coating and usually have three (or sometimes six) scales, each scale with a single seed. J. communis is a very slowly growing plant reaching approximately 20 and 50 cm in height after 5 and 10 years, respectively [5]. The cultivation of J. communis is not very problematic. The maintenance of plant is low, it prefers full sun and a well drained, slightly acidic soil. This popular garden shrub is resistant to low temperature, harsh weather conditions and environmental pollution. Extraction of essential oil from berries Most of the organs of J. communis contain essential oil, but is extracted mainly from berries, needles and branches. Traditionally, the oil is collected by extraction using organic solvent: methanol, nhexane, but the main process applied is distillation of the crushed, dried, partially dried or fermented berries [6]. Juniper essential oil is usually present in berries at relatively low concentrations (0.2–3.42%) and recovery techniques of high performance are required to achieve high oil yields. Various techniques have been used for juniper oil extraction such as hydrodistillation [7, 8], supercritical carbon dioxide extraction [9-12], solvent extraction [10] and simultaneous distillation extraction method [8]. Damjanović et al. isolated volatile compounds from berries of common juniper by three different techniques: hydrodistillation, hexane extraction and supercritical CO2 extraction [10]. They obtained the essential oil with yield of 2.17% using hydrodistillation, the hexane extraction yield was 5.31% and supercritical CO2 extraction yield was 0.96%. Chemical composition analyses conducted by GC/MS revealed that the samples differed quantitatively and qualitatively. The concentrations of monoterpene hydrocarbons (α-pinene, sabinene, myrcene) were higher in the hydrodistilled oil, while some less volatile compounds were present in extracts, especially in hexane extract. Vol. 63 No. 3 2017 50 Each technique of ext (...truncated)