title: Volatile composition and biological activity of key lime Citrus aurantifolia essential oil.
abstract: The essential oil of Citrus aurantifolia (Christm) Swingle fruits (limes) was studied for its potential spasmolytic effects in relation to its chemical composition. The essential oil, extracted by hydrodistillation (HD), was analyzed by GC-FID and GC-MS. The antispasmodic activity was evaluated on isolated rabbit jejunum, aorta and uterus. The results indicated that the essential oil of C. aurantifolia possesses important spasmolytic properties, which are likely to be due to its major constituents, limonene (58.4%), beta-pinene (15.4%), gamma-terpinene (8.5%), and citral (4.4%).
authors.affiliation: Pharmaco-Biological Department, School of Pharmacy, University of Messina, Messina - Italy.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Spadaro
authors.forename: Rosaria
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: Clara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Circosta
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Occhiuto
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta / Q000187:drug effects; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D032082:Citrus aurantiifolia / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007583:Jejunum / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000187:drug effects*; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010276:Parasympatholytics / Q000032:analysis* / Q000494:pharmacology; D011817:Rabbits; D014599:Uterus / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D009822:Oils, Volatile; D010276:Parasympatholytics