Quim. Nova, Vol. 31, No. 3, 503-507, 2008 Ar ti go *e-mail: albjcava@iq.unesp.br ESSENTIAL OILS FROM LEAVES OF Cryptocarya spp FROM THE ATLANTIC RAIN FOREST Marcelo Telascrea, Carla C. de Araújo and Alberto J. Cavalheiro* Departamento de Química Orgânica, Instituto de Química, Universidade Estadual de São Paulo, CP 355, 14801-970 Araraquara – SP, Brazil Márcia O. M. Marques and Roselaine Facanali Centro de Genética, Biologia Molecular e Fitoquímica, Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, 13020-902 Campinas – SP, Brazil Pedro L. R. de Moraes Departamento de Botânica, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 13083-970 Campinas – SP, Brazil Recebido em 11/12/06; aceito em 6/9/07; publicado na web em 10/3/08 The essential oils from leaves of four Cryptocarya spp endemic in the Brazilian Atlantic rain forest were obtained by hydrodistillation and shown by GC-MS analysis to contain mono and sesquiterpenes. The major components of the oil of Cryptocarya moschata were linalool (34.3%), α-terpinene (17.0%), γ-terpinene (10.4%), 1,8-cineole (5.8%) and trans-ocimene (4.8%), whilst those of C. botelhensis were α-pinene (22.7%), β-pinene (9.2%), trans-verbenol (8.4%), trans-pinocarveol (5.5%) and myrtenal (5.4%). The principal compounds of C. mandioccana oil were β-caryophyllene (13.8%), spathulenol (10.2%), caryophyllene oxide (7.8%), δ-cadinene (6.9%) and bicyclogermacrene (6.4%), whilst those of C. saligna were germacrene D (15.5%), bicyclogermacrene (13.8%), spathulenol (11.8%) and germacrene B (5.7%). Keywords : essential oils; Cryptocarya spp.; Lauraceae. INTRODUCTION Cryptocarya (Lauraceae) is a pantropical genus containing around 350 species distributed mainly within Malaysia and Australia.1 Although 23 species have been described for South America, de Moraes2 has recognized eight validly published species names. Seven of these species, namely, Cryptocarya aschersoniana Mez, C. citriformis (Vell.) P.L.R. de Moraes, C. mandioccana Meisn., C. micrantha Meisn., C. moschata Nees & Mart., C. saligna Mez and C. subcorymbosa Mez. are endemic in Atlantic Rain Forest (Mata Atlântica) of Brazil. In earlier phytochemical investigations of the essential oils of Cryptocarya species, the occurrence of (-)-massoilactone was reported in the bark oil of C. massoia3 and linalool was reported in leaf oil of C. moschata and C. aschersoniana, although the last of these also contained β-myrcene, 1,8-cineol, and stereo-isomeric linalool oxides.4 Seventy one components were identified in the essential oil from leaves of C. alba, the most important of which were terpin-4-ol, p-cymol, cineol, α-pinene, β-pinene and borneol-terpineol.5 The essential oil from leaves of C. cunninghamii contains either bicyclogermacrene (52.4%) or 6- nonyl-5,6-dihydro-5,6-pyrone (78-88%) as its major component, besides 6-heptyl-5,6-dihydro-2H-pyran-2-one, 6-pentyl-5,6-2H-pyran-2-one and 2-phenylethyl benzoate.6 Analysis of essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation of leaves of C. mandioccana, including intraspecific variants, yielded 64 compounds with predominance of β-caryophyllene, spathulenol, caryophyllene oxide, δ-cadinene, germacrene D, benzaldehyde and bicyclogermacrene.7 Sampling the essential oil from leaves of C. moschata Nees (current status C. mandioccana Meisner) at different times and seasons revealed no significant variation in oil composition.8 In the present study, we have compared the chemical constitutions of the essential oil from leaves of C. mandioccana, C. moschata and C. saligna, the three most common Cryptocarya species from Atlantic Rain Forest of São Paulo State, Brazil, and C. botelhensis – a new species described in 2006 by de Moraes.9 EXPERIMENTAL Plant material Leaves of C. mandioccana Meisn. and C. botelhensis P. L. R. Moraes were harvested in November 1999 and December 2000, respectively, from the Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho, São Miguel Arcanjo, São Paulo. Leaves of C. moschata Nees & Mart. were collected in February 2002 from the Mata da Mariana, Ibaté, São Paulo, whilst leaves of C. saligna Mez were gathered in November 1999 from the Parque Estadual Serra do Mar – Núcleo Picinguaba, Ubatuba, São Paulo. All the species were in fruits at the date of collection except C. botelhensis, which was in bud. Plant material was identified by Dr. P. L. R. de Moraes. A voucher specimen of C. mandioccana (Cavalheiro CB353) was deposited in the São Paulo State herbarium “Maria Eneyda P. Kaufmann Fidalgo” (SP) and vouchers of C. botelhensis, C. saligna and C. moschata (Moraes 1243, Moraes 2472, and Moraes 2347, respectively)were deposited in Escola Superior de Agricultura Luís de Queiroz herbarium (ESA). Hydrodistillation Fresh leaf material (around 500 g) was frozen with liquid nitrogen, triturated using a porcelain mortar and pestle and submitted to hydrodistillation (i. e. plant material in boiling water) in a Clevenger- type apparatus to yield 0.05 to 0.06% of oil. The oil was stored at –18 oC in a glass vial under nitrogen until required for further analysis. Essential oil analysis Analyses were performed using a Shimadzu model QP-5000 gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer equipped with a DB-5 (J&W 504 Quim. NovaTelascrea et al. Scientific) fused silica capillary column (30 m x 0.25 mm; 0.25 µm). The oven temperature was programmed from 60 to 240 oC at 3 oC/min, and the injector and interface temperatures were maintained at 240 and 230 oC, respectively.10 The carrier gas was helium at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min-1 (constant volume). Mass spectra were obtained at 70 eV. Samples (1 µL) were injected manually in the split mode (20:1). Identifications of essential oil components were made by reference to the NIST 62 library,11 and their relative percentages were calculated from normalized peak areas (uncorrected for specific responses). Retention indices12 were determined relative to the retention times of a series of n-alkane standards (C-10 to C-30: Sigma, product ref. no. R 8769, Sigma), measured under the same chromatographic conditions described above, and compared with published values.10 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Ninety compounds present in the essential oils from leaves of four Cryptocarya species were identified from chromatographic and spectrometric data (Table 1).The chemical profiles of these oils showed significant differences in composition between the species studied (Figure 1). The main constituents of C. mandioccana oil were sesquiterpenes (β-caryophyllene, spathulenol, caryophyllene oxide, δ-cadinene, bicyclogermacrene and germacrene D), whilst those of the oil of C. moschata were acyclic and menthane type monoterpenes (linalool and α-terpinene) as previously reported for these species.4,7 The main constituents of the essential oil of C. botelhensis were the pinane monoterpenes, whilst sesquiterpenes were predominant in the essential oil of C. saligna. The major sesquiterpenes identified in the essential oil from leaves of C. mandioccana belongs to two main classes (Figure 2), namely, the humulene/caryophyllene type resulting from C1-C11 cyclisation of farnesyl diphosphate (FPP), and those derived from germacrene/ bicyclogermacrene produced by C1-C10 cyclisation of the C 15 -pre- cursor.7,13,14 The occurrence of distinct sesquiterpene synthases, each associated with a different mode of cyclisation of FPP, is not yet conclusive and it has been suggested that a certain degree of freedom in the process of ring closure might be responsible for the formation of multiple end-products.15 However, the essential oil from C. saligna exhibited a significant predominance of sesquiterpenes deriving from C1-C10 cyclisation and this may be indicative of the occurrence of a specific sesquiterpene synthase within this species. Table 1. Constituents of the essential oil from leaves of Cryptocarya spp. endemic in the Brazilian Atlantic rain forest C. mandioccana C. moschata C. saligna C. botelhensis No. Compound RI lit RI exp % RI exp % RI exp % RI exp % 1 α-thujene 931 925 1.4 928 0.2 2 α-pinene 939 939 1.7 932 2.3 933 4.3 935 22.7 3 α-fenchene 951 947 0.6 4 camphene 953 947 0.2 955 0.4 5 ni - 947 6.9 6 thuja-2.4(10)-diene 957 952 1.2 7 ni - 955 0.4 8 benzaldehyde 961 957 3.4 9 sabinene 976 972 2.6 972 5.6 10 β-pinene 980 976 1.0 976 3.1 976 2.6 977 9.2 11 β-mircene 991 990 1.9 12 α-terpinene 1018 1016 17.0 1016 0.3 13 o-cymene 1022 1022 3.1 1023 0.3 1023 0.4 14 p-menthene 1023 1025 0.3 15 β-felandrene 1031 1026 1.6 16 limonene 1031 1027 0.6 1027 0.2 17 benzyl alcohol 1032 1029 1.4 18 1.8-cineol 1033 1028 5.8 1030 3.4 19 cis-ocimene 1040 1035 0.5 20 trans-ocimene 1050 1045 4.8 21 γ-terpinene 1062 1056 10.4 1057 0.2 1057 0.3 22 acetophenone 1065 1069 0.5 23 cis-sabinene hydrate 1068 1065 0.2 24 cis-linalool oxide 1074 1074 1.0 1067 0.7 25 allyl hexanoate 1080 1069 0.1 26 trans-linalool oxide 1088 1084 0.8 27 terpinolene 1088 1082 0.8 1082 0.6 28 ni - 1086 0.3 29 trans-sabinene hydrate 1097 1097 0.2 30 6-camphenone 1093 1088 0.6 31 linalool 1098 1097 0.7 1096 34.3 1091 0.8 1094 1.4 32 ni 1098 1102 0.5 33 isopenthyl 2-methyl butanoate 1099 1103 0.2 34 isopentyl isovalerate 1103 1102 0.5 35 trans-pinan-2-ol 1119 1120 0.1 36 α-campholenal 1125 1123 0.5 1125 2.6 505Essential oil from leaves of Cryptocarya spp from atlantic rain forestVol. 31, No. 3 Table 1. continuation C. mandioccana C. moschata C. saligna C. botelhensis No. Compound RI lit RI exp % RI exp % RI exp % RI exp % 37 cis-limonene oxide 1134 1029 0.1 38 nopinone 1137 1134 0.4 39 trans-pinocarveol 1139 1137 0.7 1138 5.5 40 cis-verbenol 1140 1140 1.0 41 trans-verbenol 1144 1142 1.3 1146 8.4 42 cis-dehidro-α-terpineol 1144 1148 0.2 43 sabina ketone 1156 1154 0.3 44 trans-pinocamphone 1160 1158 0.3 45 pinocarvone 1162 1159 0.3 1161 2.5 46 p-mentha-1.5-dien-8-ol 1166 1164 0.7 47 terpin-4-ol 1177 1179 0.9 1175 0.7 48 naphthalene 1179 1183 0.3 49 p-cymen-2-ol 1183 1183 0.3 50 α-terpineol 1189 1184 0.1 51 myrtenal 1193 1194 0.8 1194 5.4 52 verbenone 1204 1207 1207 2.4 53 trans-carveol 1217 1217 0.7 54 carvone 1242 1240 0.1 55 bornyl acetate 1285 1285 0.6 56 δ-elemene 1339 1337 0.3 1337 1.8 57 α-cubebene 1351 1350 0.8 1349 0.4 58 α-copaene 1376 1376 2.9 1375 1.6 1376 1.2 59 β-bourbonene 1384 1384 0.8 1384 0.5 60 β-cubebene 1390 1390 0.5 1391 0.5 1389 0.2 61 β-elemene 1391 1392 2.6 1393 2.8 62 ni - 1395 0.4 63 β-caryophyllene 1418 1418 13.8 1418 3.3 1419 4.7 1419 0.6 64 β-cedrene 1418 1420 0.3 65 β-gurjunene 1432 1430 0.4 66 aromadendrene 1439 1438 0.4 67 γ-elemene 1433 1433 0.8 68 α-humulene 1454 1453 2.1 1460 0.5 1453 1.3 69 allo-aromadendrene 1461 1461 2.6 1460 0.3 1461 3.1 70 γ-muurolene 1477 1476 1.4 1477 0.5 71 germacrene D 1480 1481 4.5 1481 15.5 72 ar-curcumene 1483 1482 1.2 73 β-selinene 1485 1486 1.4 74 phenyl ethyl 3-methylbutanoate 1489 1486 2.7 75 valencene 1491 1491 0.8 76 epi-cubebol 1493 1495 2.5 77 bicyclogermacrene 1494 1496 6.4 1497 13.8 78 α-muurolene 1499 1502 1.2 79 γ-cadinene 1513 1514 1.3 1516 2.3 80 δ-cadinene 1524 1528 6.9 1523 2.2 81 cadina-1.4-diene 1532 1531 0.3 82 α-calacorene 1542 1542 0.4 83 germacrene B 1556 1566 1.0 1556 5.7 84 spathulenol 1576 1578 10.2 1577 11.8 1582 6.1 85 trans-sesquisabinene hydrate 1580 1586 4.9 86 carophyllene oxide 1581 1583 7.8 1582 1.9 87 globulol 1583 1589 0.6 88 viridiflorol 1590 1589 2.8 89 guaiol 1595 1595 1.0 90 ni - 1604 2.6 91 ni - 1609 0.8 92 epi-cubenol 1627 1628 1.9 93 ni - 1638 0.9 94 cubenol 1642 1642 3.1 95 α-muurolol 1645 1645 0.8 96 ni - 1649 1.1 97 selin-11-en-α-ol α-cadinol 1653 1653 3.2 98 14-hydroxy-9-epi-caryophyllene 1664 1657 0.7 99 ni - 1673 0.8 100 khusinol 1674 1687 0.5 RI lit = retention index from literature; RI exp = experimental retention index; % = normalized percentage; ni = not identified 506 Quim. NovaTelascrea et al. Figure 1. Chemical profile of essential oils from leaves of Cryptocarya spp. For the key to peak identity, see Table 1 Figure 2. Biogenetic relationships between the main sesquiterpenes of Cryptocarya mandioccana and C. saligna CONCLUSION The chemical profile of essential oils from leaves of four members of the genus Cryptocarya was characteristic to each of the species studied. The oil of C. moschata presented a predominance of acyclic (linalool, trans-ocimene) and menthane (α-terpinene, γ-terpinene, 1,8-cineole) monoterpenes, whilst pinane monoterpenes (α-pinene, β-pinene, trans-verbenol, trans- pinocarveol, myrtenal) were the main components in the oil of C. botelhensis. Sesquiterpenes derived from C1-C11 (β-caryophyllene, caryophyllene oxide) and C1-C10 (spathulenol, δ-cadinene, bicyclogermacrene) cyclization of FPP were the main constituents of C. mandioccana oil, although the principal components of the oil of C. saligna were sesquiterpenes derived from C1-C10 cyclisation of the FPP precursor (germacrene D, bicyclogermacrene, spathulenol, germacrene B). 507Essential oil from leaves of Cryptocarya spp from atlantic rain forestVol. 31, No. 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors are grateful to FAPESP for financial support and to CAPES and CNPq for scholarships to M. Telascrea and C. C. de Araújo, respectively. We acknowledge Instituto Florestal for authorizing the collection of Cryptocarya spp at Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho and Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar. REFERENCES 1. Rohwer, J. G. 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