Qualitative and Quantitative Detection of Chamazulene in the Essential Oil of Two Chamomile Species Growing in Libya
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65405/tq18h943Keywords:
essential oil; chamazulene; Chamomilla recutita; Chamomilla aurea; Libya; thin-layer chromatography; GC-MS.Abstract
Chamomile is an important medicinal plant belonging to the Asteraceae family and is traditionally used in Libya as a sedative, for the relief of influenza and cough symptoms, and as a diuretic; it is also used worldwide for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders. This study aimed to qualitatively and quantitatively detect chamazulene in the essential oil of the flowers of two chamomile species growing in Libya, namely Chamomilla recutita and Chamomilla aurea. Samples were collected from Misrata (C. recutita) and Gharyan (C. aurea), and the essential oil was extracted from 50 g of flowers by steam distillation using a Clevenger apparatus in 500 mL of distilled water for 3 h. Experiments were performed on three independent biological batches per species (n = 3), with three technical injections per extract in GC-MS analysis; the mean of the technical injections for each batch was used in the statistical analysis.
The results showed that the mean essential oil yield of C. recutita was 0.62% ± 0.04% (v/w) with a pale blue color, whereas that of C. aurea was 0.11% ± 0.02% (v/w) with a pale yellow color (significant difference at p < 0.05). In thin-layer chromatography (TLC) analysis, the blue spot of C. recutita matched that of the pure chamazulene standard at R<sub>f</sub> = 0.45, whereas C. aurea showed yellow–brown spots at R<sub>f</sub> = 0.32 and 0.58, with no match to the standard. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) confirmed the presence of chamazulene in the essential oil of C. recutita (retention time 24.3 min, molecular ion m/z = 184) at 14.2% of the total chromatographic area of the essential oil, whereas no corresponding peak was detected in C. aurea (below the limit of detection of 0.1%). These findings constitute analytical evidence, supported by three independent techniques, of the chemical divergence between the two species and support the broader traditional use of C. recutita in Libya, while separate bioactivity studies are needed to evaluate the full therapeutic value of C. aurea.
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