A new chemotype of Lippia javanica (Burm.f.) Spreng collected in the Masai Mara National Reserve (Kenya): the essential oil chemical composition of its aerial parts

Abstract

The genus Lippia L., included within the Verbenaceae family, has a wide geographical distribution in Tropical and Subtropical South Africa and America. Lippia javanica (Burm.f.) Spreng is a woody, multi-stemmed shrubbery native to central, eastern and southern Africa. In this work the chemical composition of the aerial part of essential oil of a Kenyan accession of L. javanica, harvested in the Masai Mara National Reserve, never previously studied, was evaluated by GC-MS. Essential oil (Lj) was characterised by good amounts of esters (58.1%) with octyl acetate (33.7%), the main constituent of the oil, octyl butanoate (19.1%) and hexyl butanoate (4.6%) as principal metabolites. Monoterpene hydrocarbons (33.5%) were mainly represented by β-myrcene (30.6%). An update of the chemical composition of all the essential oils (EOs) of Lippia javanica, studied to date, clearly indicates that the accession subject of the present work can be considered a new chemotype.