title: Intraspecific chemical variability of essential oil from leaves of Cupressus atlantica Gaussen, an endemic and endangered coniferous species in Morocco.
abstract: The composition of essential oils isolated from leaves of 11 natural populations of Cupressus atlantica, an endemic and endangered coniferous species from Morocco, was investigated by GC-MS. In total, 42 essential oil components were identified, accounting for 73.1-97.7% of the total oil. Monoterpene (25.2-84.9%) and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (12.2-46.8%) were the principal subclasses of compounds, with α-pinene (15-65.4%), germacrene D (5.9-30.5%), δ-3-carene (2-16.6%) and γ-cadinene (1.3-9.8%) as the main constituents. The results of the oil composition were analysed by hierarchical cluster and principal component analysis that established three main groups of essential oils. These oils were differentiated by the content of the major constituents (α-pinene, germacrene D, δ-3-carene and γ-cadinene), geographical location and climatic characteristics.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biotechnologie, Protection et Valorisation des Ressources Végétales, Faculté des Sciences, Semlalia, Université Cadi Ayyad, Marrakech, Morocco. Abbad.abdelaziz@gmail.com
authors.forename: Abdelaziz
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abbad
authors.forename: Youssef
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sfairi
authors.forename: Hassani
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lahcen
authors.forename: Khalid
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bekkouche
authors.forename: Mohammed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Markouk
authors.forename: Hans
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wohlmuth
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Leach
mesh_terms: D029781:Cupressus / Q000737:chemistry*; D056727:Endangered Species; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D009018:Morocco; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000737:chemistry*; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D009822:Oils, Volatile