title: Comparative analysis of antioxidant activities of fourteen mentha essential oils and their components.
abstract: The essential oils of 14 species and hybrids, respectively, of the genus Mentha were examined for their antioxidant capacity in the ABTS (2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) assay and in a lipid-peroxidation (LPO) assay. The ABTS(.+) -scavenging capacity of pure essential-oil components and mixtures of them was also tested. In both assays, Mentha×dumetorum (classification not fully confirmed), Mentha suaveolens, and Mentha×villosa (classification not fully confirmed) showed the highest antioxidant capacity, which was ascribed to the components germacrene D, piperitone oxide, and piperitenone oxide. The high antioxidant activity in the LPO assay of the two hybrids Mentha×gracilis and, to a lower degree, of Mentha×dalmatica (classification not fully confirmed) was ascribed to their high contents of cis-ocimene and β-caryophyllene. Of the pure components tested (germacrene D, piperitone oxide, and piperitenone oxide were not tested, as not commercially available), only cis-ocimene showed a distinct antioxidant effect, whereas dihydrocarvone and linalool had pro-oxidant effects in the ABTS assay.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Vegetable Science, Life Science Center Weihenstephan, Technische Universität München, Dürnast 4, D-85350 Freising.
authors.forename: Judith
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sitzmann
authors.forename: Ruth
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Habegger
authors.forename: Wilfried H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Schnitzler
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grassmann
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation; D027541:Mentha / Q000737:chemistry*; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D009822:Oils, Volatile
keywords: ABTS (2,2′-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)); Antioxidant activity; Essential oils; Germacrene D; Lipid peroxidation; Mentha; Piperitenone oxide; Pro-oxidant activity