Mouna Souihi
National Institute for Agronomic Research in Tunisia (INRAT), Carthage University, Agronomic Sciences and Technics Laboratory (LR16INRAT05), Hedi Karray Street, 2049, Ariana, Tunisia; Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Tunis
Ismail Amri
Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Tunis
Amir Souissi
National Institute for Agronomic Research in Tunisia (INRAT), Carthage University, Agronomic Sciences and Technics Laboratory (LR16INRAT05), Hedi Karray Street, 2049, Ariana, Tunisia
Karim Hosni
National Centre for Nuclear Science and Technology (CNSTN), Sidi Thabet Technopark, 2020 Ariana, Tunisia
Nadia Ben Brahim
National Institute for Agronomic Research in Tunisia (INRAT), Carthage University, Agronomic Sciences and Technics Laboratory (LR16INRAT05), Hedi Karray Street, 2049, Ariana, Tunisia
Mohamed Annabi
National Institute for Agronomic Research in Tunisia (INRAT), Carthage University, Agronomic Sciences and Technics Laboratory (LR16INRAT05), Hedi Karray Street, 2049, Ariana, Tunisia
Keywords
Melissa Officinalis L., Essential oil, Fatty acids, Tunisia
Abstract
The leaf material of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) from different origins was evaluated for their chemical composition under the semi arid conditions of Tunisia. Qualitative and quantitative variations of the chemical composition of essential oils according to the origin were shown. The main compounds of Tunisian samples were germacrene-D (29.17-24.6%) and caryophyllene (14.91-13.44%) in Tabarka and Nefza, the samples were characterized by the absence of citral and citronellal. Fatty acids from cultivated M. officinalis leaves were analyzed by GC–MS. The major fatty acids of all studied samples were polyunsaturated fatty acids, linoleic acid (73.93-66.74%), versus (16.25-13.32%) saturated ones, oleic acid and (6.29-4.26%) of monounsaturated fatty acid palmitic acid.
Abstract