Parthenolide and essential oil content in the aerial parts of Tanacetum larvatum

¹H NMR spectroscopy has been used to measure parthenolide content in Tanacetum larvatum (Gris.) Kanitz, Asteraceae, an endemic plant of Montenegro [1]. Parthenolide, found in significant amount in T. parthenium (L.) Schultz-Bip., Asteraceae (feverfew), has been linked to the anti-migraine action. This examination provides evidence that T. larvatum contains a high level of parthenolide, comparable to that in feverfew. Investigation of the essential oil of the aerial parts put insight into its chemical composition, with the aim to give a comment on the differences in comparison to feverfew essental oil.

Aerial parts of T. larvatum, were collected in July and August during five years period, starting 2001, in Montenegro on several locations: mountain Komovi (Sample a), mountain Prokletije (Sample b) and mountain Sinjajevina (Sample c). The Parthenolide level, monitored during 2001–2005 ranged from 1.93 to 0.41% (Sample a). Although the variations in the percentage were registered, the parthenolide content in all samples was comparable to that found in feverfew [2]. Comparing to feverfew essential oil which contains mainly camphor and trans-chrysanthenyl acetate [3], trans-chrysanthenyl acetate has not been identified in the essential oils of the investigated samples. On the other hand, sabinyl acetate (37.5 and 55.6% in Samples a and b, respectively), responsible for potential teratogenicity in mice [4], has not been detected in the feverfew essential oil. Sample c contains santolina triene and β-pinene as principal components (13.0 and 30.1%, respectively), with no detected compounds known for their toxic effects.

References: [1] Dostal, J. (1942) Preslia, vìstník èeské botanické spoleènosti v Praze XX-XX1, Praha. [2] Awang, DV. et al. (1991) J Nat Prod 54: 1516–21. [3] Lawrence B. (1999) Perfumer & Flavorist 24: 45–63. [4] Pages, N. et al. (1992) Phytother Res 6: 80–3.