International Journal of Scientific Research in Knowledge (IJSRK), 1(9), pp. 363-372, 2013 Available online at http://www.ijsrpub.

com/ijsrk ISSN: 2322-4541; 2013 IJSRPUB http://dx.doi.org/10.12983/ijsrk-2013-p363-372

Full Length Research Paper Comparison of the Physical Characteristics and GC/MS of the Essential Oils of Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum sanctum
Syeda Khair-ul-Bariyah
Department of Chemistry, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore, Pakistan; E-mail: skbariyah@gmail.com
Received 17 July 2013; Accepted 18 August 2013

Abstract. Essential oils of two medicinal plants of genus Ocimum, Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum sanctum, were compared for physical characteristics, iodine values, flavour tests, sodium/potassium levels and GC/MS. The density and refractive index (1.6368) of the essential oils of O. sanctum was more than that of O. basilicum essential oils. O. basilicum essential oils were dextro-rotatory, whereas, O. sanctum essential oils were levo-rotatory (-0.044). Hydro-distillate of O. sanctum essential oil showed greater viscosity (26.75 g-1.cm.s) and fluidity was found to be greater for O. basilicum hydro-distillate (0.070 g.cm-1.s1 ). The results of the essential oils of both the plants were same for flavour substances tests. The sodium/potassium levels of methanol extract of both the plants were 0.01 ppm and for n-hexane extract it was 0.00 ppm. Iodine value was found to be greatest for the n-hexane fraction of O. basilicum (3375.54) Besides many other constituents, GC/MS analysis showed the presence of fluorene, benzonitrile, m-phenethyl-,9H-fluorene, 9-methylene-, propanamide, N-(3-methoxyphenyl)-2,2dimethyl- for the first time in the essential oils of both plants. Key words: Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum sanctum, physical characteristics, iodine values, flavour tests, GC/MS

1. INTRODUCTION The family Lamiaceae, also called Labiatae, belongs to dicotyledons. In this family 200 genera and 3200 species are found. The genus Ocimum belongs to the Lamiaceae family. Some reports give the number of 50-60 species in the genus (Suchorska et al., 1966), whereas, some reported the number up to 150. All the plants of the genus are collectively called basil (Simon et al., 1990). The two species of the genus, Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum sanctum, are most widely distributed and studied. Ozo is a Greek word which means to smell. It is the basis for genus name Ocimum (McIntosh et al., 1853). The word basilicum comes from basilisk, a Latin word, referring to king. It is known as Herbe Royale in French, which reflects its positive nature (Muenscher et al., 1978). It is also known as The king of herbs. The common name for O. basilicum is Sweet Basil. It originated in the warmer parts of the Indo-Malayan regions and is distributed in tropical and hotter parts of the Indo-Pakistan Subcontinent. O. sanctum (Queen of Herbs) is found in tropical part of Asia and has been grown in India for more than 3,000 years (Gupta et al., 2002 and Devi, 2001). In India it is known as Tulsi and is considered the most sacred plant. Tulsi means The incomparable one. It has got immense Ayurvedic medicinal importance especially in the Eastern areas. The present work aimed to compare the physical characteristics, iodine values, flavor tests,

sodium/potassium levels and GC/MS of the essential oils of the two mentioned herbs extracted by Solvent extraction, Soxhlet extraction and Hydro-distillation. 2. EXPERIMENTAL 2.1. Materials The leaves of O. basilicum and O. sanctum were taken from a local nursery of Lahore, Pakistan. Identification was done by the author. After removal of dust and foreign particles, the fresh leaves were used for extraction by the three techniques. In each technique, 500 gm of the leaves were used. All the chemicals used were of analytical grade and were purchased from E. Merck, Germany. Throughout the study, double-distilled water and deionized water was used. The Refractometer used was of ERMA, JAPAN (MODEL NO: 6688). The Flame Photometer was of BUCK Scientific (MODEL NO: PFP-7). The Polarimeter was of Rudolph Instruments, USA (MODEL NO: Pol 781 M6U). GC/MS was of Agilent Technologies, USA (MODEL NO: 5975 C). 2.2. Methods 2.2.1. Physical Characteristics of Essential Oils Viscosity, fluidity, surface tension, solubility in 85% ethanol, specific gravity, refractive index, rotation and

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density of the essential oils were determined according to the standard methods (Guenther, 1960). 2.2.2. Flavour Substances Tests The essential oils were tested for the presence of water, foreign esters, fatty oils and resinified essential oils, odour, taste and adulteration. 3.2.3. Water in essential oils For the detection of water in essential oil, 10 drops of the oil were mixed with 1 mL of CS2. Clear or turbid solution decided about the presence of water. 3.2.4. Foreign Esters in Essential Oils For the detection of foreign esters in essential oils, 1 mL of the oil was mixed in 3 mL alcoholic KOH which was prepared by refluxing 100 g of KOH in 1 L of ethanol for 30 min and filtered to remove insoluble part. Oil-alcoholic KOH mixture was heated for 2 min on water bath and allowed to cool. Presence or absence of crystals after 30 min of cooling indicated the foreign esters. 3.2.5. Fatty Oils and Resinified Essential Oils in Essential Oils To check the presence of resinified essential oils, 1 drop of the oil was dropped onto filter paper. The drops were allowed to evaporate for 24 hrs and the spot was touched to note the feel. 3.2.6. Odour and Taste of Essential Oils To test the odour and taste of the essential oils, 3 drops of the oil were mixed with 5 mL of 90% ethanol prepared by making 90 mL volume of ethanol up to 100 mL in a volumetric flask. Oil-alcohol mixture was mixed in 10 g of powdered sucrose/table sugar. The mixture was smelled and tasted. 3.2.7. Iodine Value/Adulteration Test Iodine value or adulteration of the essential oils was estimated by Winklers Bromate method (Lakhani et al., 1916). Oil was weighed up to 0.05 g and dissolved in 5 mL of carbon tetrachloride. Standard solution of bromated-bromide up to 25 mL (2.784 g potassium bromated and 25 g of potassium bromide made up to litre with distilled water) was added. Then 5 mL of 10% HCl was added and the mixture was shaken well

and kept for 30 min. Excessive bromine was determined by the addition of 5 mL of 10% potassium iodide. Then titration was done with 0.1 M Na2S2O3 using starch as an indicator. Blank titration was also conducted in which sample/plant extract was not added. Iodine value or adulteration was calculated by the formula: Iodine Value= (Blank-Test) 126.9N/Wt. of sample 3.2.8. Detection of Sodium/ Potassium level Level of sodium and potassium in the methanol extract of both the plants was estimated by using flame photometer (PFP-7). Standard solutions of sodium and potassium were diluted to get a standard curve. Dilutions were made according to the formula: C1V1=C2V2 Then samples were checked for the presence of sodium and potassium in them by first setting the blank (deionized water) at zero. Concentration of sodium and potassium was calculated from the standard curves. 3.2.9. GC/MS Analysis Qualitative analysis of the essential oils was done by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry by following the reported method (Ismail, 2006). The capillary column of the instrument (HP-5 MS) was 30 m long, had temperature range of -60-350oC, internal and external diameter of 0.25 micron and 0.25 mm, respectively. Helium was used as a carrier gas, temperature was programmed from 50oC to 250 oC, injector temperature was adjusted at 240oC and ionization energy was 70eV. Qualitative analysis of the compounds was done by MS Library. 4. RESULTS The physical characteristics of the hydro-distillate of O. basilicum and O.sanctum, and the physical characteristics of the methanol fraction of O. basilicum and O. sanctum are shown in Table 1 and Table 2, respectively. Table 3 shows the physical characteristics of the n-Hexane fraction of O. basilicum and O. sanctum. The results of the flavour substances tests of O. basilicum and O. sanctum, and the results of iodine values of O. basilicum and O. sanctum are shown in Table 4 and Table 5, respectively. Table 6 shows the results of sodium/potassium level of O. basilicum and O. sanctum.

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Table 1: Physical Characteristics of Hydro-distillate of O. basilicum and O. sanctum

Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Physical Characteristics Density at 200C Specific Gravity at 20oC Optical rotation at 250C Viscosity at 200C Fluidity at 200C Surface tension at 200C Refractive Index at 200C Solubility in 85% ethanol at 20oC Value for O. basilicum 1.196 g/cm3 1.2 0.114o 14.37 g-1.cm.s 0.070 g.cm-1.s-1 78.38 Nm-1 1.6363 Soluble in 1:1 ratio Value for O. sanctum 1.552 g/cm3 1.6 -0.044o 26.75 g-1.cm.s 0.037 g.cm-1.s-1 84.29 Nm-1 1.6362 Soluble in 1:1 ratio

Table 2: Physical Characteristics of Methanol Fraction of O. basilicum and O. sanctum

Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 Physical Characteristics Density at 20 C Specific Gravity at 20oC Refractive Index at 200C Solubility in 85% ethanol at 20oC
0

Value for O. basilicum Solvent Extraction 1.57 g/cm 1.6 1.6368 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio
3

Value for O. sanctum Solvent Extraction 0.85 g/cm 0.9 1.6362 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio
3

Soxhlet Extraction 1.67 g/cm 1.7 1.6362 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio
3

Soxhlet Extraction 1.217 g/cm3 1.22 1.6362 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio

Table 3: Physical Characteristics of n-Hexane Fraction of O. basilicum and O. sanctum

Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 Physical Characteristics Density at 200C Specific Gravity at 20oC Refractive Index at 200C Solubility in 85% ethanol at 200C Value for O. basilicum Solvent Extraction 0.902 g/cm3 0.9 1.6362 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio Soxhlet Extraction 0.559 g/cm3 0.6 1.6362 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio Value for O. sanctum Solvent Extraction 0.923 g/cm3 0.9 1.3351 Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio Soxhlet Extraction ----------------Not soluble up to 1:20 ratio

The results of the GC/MS of n-Hexane fraction of O. basilicum obtained by solvent extraction are shown in Table 7. Figure 1 and Figure 2 show the GC/MS spectrum of O. basilicum n-Hexane fraction obtained by solvent extraction, and the GC/MS spectrum of O. basilicum chloroform fraction obtained by solvent extraction, respectively. The GC/MS spectrum of O. sanctum n-Hexane fraction obtained by solvent extraction is shown in Fig. 3. The results of the GC/MS of the chloroform fraction of O. basilicum obtained by solvent extraction
Sr. No. Tests Methanolic Fraction Extraction method Solvent Soxhlet

are shown in Table 8. The results of the GC/MS of the n-Hexane fraction of O. sanctum obtained by solvent extraction are shown in Table 9. The results of the GC/MS of the chloroform fraction of O. sanctum obtained by solvent extraction are shown in Table 10. The GC/MS spectrum of O. sanctum chloroform fraction obtained by solvent extraction is shown in Figure 4.

Table 4: Flavour Substances Tests of O. basilicum and O. sanctum

Observation n-hexanoic Fraction Extraction method Sovent Soxhlet Hydro-distillate Extraction method Hydro-distillation Result

Water in essential oils

Unclear soln

Unclear soln

Clear soln

Foreign Esters in

No crystals

No crystals

No crystals

No Water except in hydrodistillate Foreigne sters in

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essential oils Fatty oils and resinified oils Odour essential oils Fatty oils absent

No greasy spot

No greasy spot

No greasy spot

Very pleasant

Very pleasant

Very pleasant

Taste

Bitter

Bitter

Bitter

Same smell like that of leaves Same taste like that of leaves

Table 5: Iodine Values of O. basilicum and O. sanctum

Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 Fraction n-hexane n-hexane methanol methanol Hydro-distillate Extraction method Solvent extraction Soxhlet extraction Solvent extraction Soxhlet extraction Hydrodistillation Time 30 min 30 min 30 min 30 min 30 min Iodine Value for O. basilicum 3375.54 1649.7 76.14 558.36 1142.1 Iodine Value for O. sanctum 1015.2 1649.7 177.66 456.84 888.3

Table 6: Sodium/Potassium Level in Plant Extract of O.basilicum and O. sanctum

Sr. No 1 2 Ions detected Sodium Potassium Conc. in Methanolic Fraction 0.01 ppm 0.01 ppm Conc. in n-Hexanoic Fraction 0.00 ppm 0.00 ppm

Table 7: GC/MS of n-Hexane Fraction of O. basilicum obtained by Solvent Extraction (1-5 are unwanted peaks)
Peak 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Retention Time 6.964 8.284 8.359 8.430 10.982 11.081 13.454 13.538 14.202 15.680 15.790 17.500 17.698 Peak height 131708 115300 72780 462875 34931 67277 67233 52991 92129 72404 55942 296160 50722 Percentage of Total (%) 5.861 4.985 2.444 16.507 1.236 1.850 2.041 2.071 2.938 2.179 1.892 9.725 1.491 Mol. Wt. (g/mol) 154 128 170 148 154 198 224 166 222 280 178 149 294 Mol. Formula C10H18O C10H18 C12H26 C10H12O C11H22 C14H30 C16H32 C13H10 C15H26O C20H40 C14H10 C20H30O4 C21H42 Constituents Linalool Naphthalene Dodecane Estragole 5-Undecene Tetradecane 1-Hexadecene Fluorene tau-Cadinol 5-Eicosene, (E) 9H-Fluorene, 9-methylene1,2-Benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester 10-Heneicosene (c,t)

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Fig. 1: GC/MS Analysis of O. basilicum n-Hexane Fraction (Solvent Extraction)

Table 8: GC/MS of Chloroform Fraction of O. basilicum obtained by Solvent Extraction (1 is an unwanted peak)
Peak 2 Retention Time 17.500 Peak height 412765 Percentage of Total (%) 48.340 Mol. Wt. (g/mol) 149 Mol. Formula C20H30O4 Constituents 1,2-Benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester

Fig. 2: GC/MS Analysis of O. basilicum Chloroform Fraction (Solvent Extraction)

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Bariyah Comparison of the Physical Characteristics and GC/MS of the Essential Oils of Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum sanctum Table 9: GC/MS Analysis of n-Hexane Fraction of O. sanctum obtained by Solvent Extraction (1-5 and 19 are unwanted peaks)
Peak 6 7 Retention Time 6.707 6.854 Peak height 102265 214131 Percentage of Total (%) 6.095 11.018 Mol. Wt. (g/mol) 142 207 Mol. Formula C7H7(OH)Cl C12H17NO2 C10H8 C10H16 C10H12O2 C11H22 C14H30 C15H13N C16H32 C13H10 C19H38 C11H14O2 C16H22O4 Constituents Phenol, 2-chloro-6methylPropanamide, N-(3methoxyphenyl)-2,2dimethylNaphthalene Trans-Ocimene Eugenol 5-Undecene Tetradecane Benzonitrile, m-phenethyl7-Hexadecene, (Z)Fluorene 1-Nonadecene Methyl Eugenol Dibutyl phthalate

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

8.283 8.358 10.631 10.983 11.081 11.542 13.454 13.537 15.680 15.790 17.500

120463 110173 148486 37552 80949 424274 69610 51394 71201 54297 289259

5.040 3.720 4.601 1.297 2.766 13.725 2.054 1.820 2.153 1.905 9.237

128 136 164 154 198 207 224 166 178 149 291

Fig. 3: GC/MS Analysis of n-Hexane Fraction of O. sanctum (Solvent Extraction) Table 10: GC/MS Analysis of Chloroform Fraction of O. sanctum obtained by Solvent Extraction (1 is an unwanted peak)
Peak 2 Retention Time 17.500 Peak height 381201 Percentage of Total (%) 51.530 Mol. Wt. (g/mol) 291 Mol. Formula C16H22O4 Constituents Dibutyl phthalate

5. DISCUSSION 5.1. Physical Characteristics of Essential Oils The results for physical characteristics of essential oils of O. basilicum and O. sanctum are given in Table 1, 2 and 3. For O. basilicum, the density of the essential oils at 20oC ranged from 0.85g/cm3-1.217g/cm3. The values of the refractive index at 20oC were from 1.6362 to 1.6363. Specific gravity of the oils at 20oC varied between 0.6-1.22. All the oil fractions were

insoluble in 85% ethanol, except hydro-distillate, which was soluble in ethanol in exactly 1:1 ratio. For hydro-distillate, the values of viscosity, fluidity and surface tension at 20oC were 14.37g-1.cm.s, 0.070g.cm-1.s-1 and 78.38 Nm-1, respectively. Optical rotation at 25oC was 0.114o. For O. sanctum, the density of the essential oils at 20oC ranged from 0.923g/cm3-1.67g/cm3. The values of the refractive index at 20oC were from 1.6368-1.6362. Specific gravity of the oils at 20oC varied between 0.9-1.7.

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Fig. 4: GC/MS Analysis of Chloroform Fraction of O. sanctum (Solvent Extraction)

All the essential oil fractions were insoluble in 85% ethanol, except hydro-distillate, which was soluble in exactly 1:1 ratio. For hydro-distillate, the values of viscosity, fluidity and surface tension at 20oC were 26.75g-1.cm.s, 0.037g.cm-1.s-1 and 84.29 Nm-1, respectively. Optical rotation at 25oC was 0.044o. These results can be justified by the already reported work (Bowles, 2003), according to which the densities of essential oils are from 0.780g/cm30.970g/cm3. Presence of aldehydes and phenolic derivatives of certain esters can be confirmed in the essential oils having specific gravity 1 or > 1. Hydrocarbons, alcohols, esters and ketones are likely to be found in the essential oils which are lighter than water. Comparative study showed that the values of density, bulk density and relative density of O. sanctum essential oils were more than those found for O. basilicum essential oils. The maximum refractive index was shown by O. sanctum essential oil (1.6368). Optical rotation confirmed that majority of the contents of O. sanctum essential were levo-rotatory (0.044o) and were proved to be dextro-rotatory in case of O. basilicum. Viscosity of O. sanctum hydrodistillate was greater (26.75g-1.cm.s) and fluidity was greater for O. basilicum hydro-distillate (0.070g.cm-

.s-1). Likewise, O. sanctum hydro-distillate had greater surface tension value (84.29 Nm-1). As far as solubility in 85% ethanol is concerned, the results were same for the essential oils of both the plants. Methods of preparation and purification of essential oils, the age of the oils and maturity of the plant influence the specific gravity of the essential oils. Specific temperature is required for the determination of specific gravity as increase in temperature brings about change in the volume of essential oils due to large coefficient of expansion. The determination of refractive index is a confirmatory test about the purity of the oils. 5.2. Flavour Substances Tests and Iodine Values The results of flavour substances tests and iodine values of essential oils of O. basilicum and O. sanctum are given in Table 4. For both the plants, tests indicated the presence of foreign esters and detected the absence of fatty oils and water in essential oils (except in hydro-distillate which showed the presence of water). Odour and taste were found to be pleasant and bitter, respectively. The results of iodine value are given in table 5. Iodine values ranged between 76.14-

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3375.54 for O. basilicum and between 177.66-1649.70 for O. sanctum. The results of iodine values show the adulteration level of the oils. The more the iodine value, the greater is the adulteration of the oils. Hence, adulteration was highest in case of n-hexane fraction of O. basilicum and O. sanctum extracted through soxhlet extraction; O. basilicum n-hexane fraction having the highest value of the two. The results of the flavour substances tests of the essential oils of O. basilicum and O. sanctum were same. 5.3. Sodium/Potassium Level Results of Sodium/Potassium level of methanolic and n-hexanoic fractions of O. basilicum and O. sanctum are given in Table 6. The results were same for both the plants i.e. 0.01 ppm Na/K level for methanolic extract and 0.00 ppm in case of n-hexanoic extract. The results are in agreement with the work reported (Narendhirakannan et al., 2005) who reportes the presence of trace elements in O. basilicum and finds Na and K in very small amounts. 5.4. GC/MS Analysis Result of GC/MS analysis of n-hexane fraction obtained through solvent extraction of O. basilicum is given in Table 7. Following 13 constituents were detected: linalool (5.861%), naphthalene (4.985%), dodecane (2.444%), estragole (16.507%), 5-undecene (1.236%), tetradecane (1.850%), 1-hexadecene (2.041%), fluorene (2.071%), tau-cadinol (2.938%), 5-eicosene, (E) (2.179%), 9H-fluorene, 9-methylene(1.892%), 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester (9.725%) and 10-heneicosene (c,t) (1.491%). In chloroform fraction (Table 8) only one peak of 1, 2Benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester (48.340%) was noted. Result of GC/MS analysis of n-hexane fraction obtained through solvent extraction of O. sanctum is given in Table 9. Following 13 constituents were detected: phenol, 2-chloro-6methyl(6.095%), propanamide, N-(3methoxyphenyl)-2,2-dimethyl(11.018%), naphthalene (5.040%), trans-ocimene (3.720%), eugenol (4.601%), 5-undecene (1.297%), tetradecane (2.766%), benzonitrile, m-phenethyl- (13.725%), 7hexadecene, (Z)- (2.054%), fluorene (1.820%), 1nonadecene (2.153%), methyl eugenol (1.905%) and dibutyl phthalate (9.237%). The presence of phenol justified the phytochemical study which showed the presence of phenols. In chloroform fraction (Table 10) only one peak of dibutyl phthalate (51.530%) was noted. In only O. basilicum n-hexane fraction obtained through solvent extraction, linalool (5.861%), dodecane (2.444%), estragole (16.507%),

5-eicosene, (E) (2.179%), tau-cadinol (2.938%), 9Hfluorene, 9-methylene-(1.892%), 1,2benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester (9.725%), 10-heneicosene (c,t) (1.491%) 1-hexadecene (2.041%) were detected, whereas, they were absent in O. sanctum n-hexanoic fraction which showed the presence of phenol, 2-chloro-6-methyl- (6.095%), propanamide, N-(3-methoxyphenyl)-2,2-dimethyl(11.018%), trans-ocimene (3.720%), eugenol (4.601%), benzonitrile, m-phenethyl- (13.725%), 7hexadecene, (Z)- (2.054%), 1-nonadecene (2.153%), methyl eugenol (1.905%) and dibutyl phthalate (9.237%). Among the common fractions, naphthalene, 5-undecene tetradecane were found in greater percentage in the essential oil of O. sanctum being 5.040%, 1.297%, and 2.766% respectively. Fluorene was in greater percentage in O. basilicum essential oil (2.071%). In chloroform fraction of O. basilicum obtained through solvent extraction, one peak of 1, 2Benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester (48.340%) was noted, whereas, one peak of dibutyl phthalate (51.530%) was noted in case of O. sanctum. Through soxhlet extraction and hydro-distillation same constituents were detected but the maximum numbers of constituents were identified in the n-hexane fraction obtained through solvent extraction. A lot of work has been reported regarding the chemical constituents of O. basilicum and O. sanctum. Linalool has been reported as the main component in O.basilicum essential oils from Bangladesh (Mondello et al., 2002). Similarly, linalool up to71.4% in O. basilicum essential oil from Bulgaria has been reported (Jirovetz and Buchbauer, 2001). Bergamotene, methyl cinnamate/linalool, methyl chavicol/linalool, methyl eugenol/linalool, linalool, methyl chavicol and linalool/eugenol have been reported as the major chemotypes of O. basilicum (Zheljazkov et al., 2007) from Mississippi. From China, Croatia, Israel, Republic of Guinea, Nigeria, Egypt, Pakistan and Malaysia, (z)cinnamic acid methyl ester, linalool, eugenol, estragol, bergamotene, 1,8-cineol, -cadinol, methyl cinnamate and limonene has been listed as major components of the essential oil. Forty seven components comprising 97.99% of total oil has been reported (Hassanpouraghdam et al., 2010). Monoterpenoids comprise the major fraction of the oil (77.8%) followed by sesquiterpenoids (12.8%). Oxygenated monoterpenes are 75.3% present with estragole (21.5%), menthone (33.1%), menthol (6.1%), isoneomenthol (7.5%) and pulegone (3.7%) being the main compounds. The only monoterpene hydrocarbon is limonene (1.5%). Menthyl acetate was found in trace amounts (5.6%). Similarly, a lot of work has been reported on the chemical composition of the essential oils of Ocimum species (Silva et al., 2004, Trevisan et al., 2006, Chalchat and Ozcan,

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2008). As far as the literature has been cited, fluorene, benzonitrile, m-phenethyl-, 9H-fluorene, 9-methylene, propanamide, N-(3-methoxyphenyl)-2,2-dimethylare being reported for the first time in the essential oils of the plants under discussion. 6. CONCLUSION Hence, the physical and chemical aspects of the essential oils of O. basilicum and O. sanctum were revealed. The essential oil fractions were found to be rich in aromatic and straight chain hydrocarbons, monoterpenoids and their oxygenated derivatives. This leads to the interpretation of vast medicinal value of both plants due to these constituents. The newly detected constituents can be studied separately for possible therapeutic abilities and physical properties. REFERENCES Bowles EJ (2003). Chemistry of aromatherapeutic oils. Allen and Unwin. ISBN 17411405 1X. Chalchat JC and Ozcan MM (2008). Comparative essential oil composition of flowers, leaves and stems of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) used as herb. Food Chemistry, 110:501-503. Guenther E (1960). Determination of Physical and Chemical Properties. Toronto, New York and London: D. Van Nostrand Comp., INC., 3: 236262. Hassanpouraghdam BM, Hassane A, Shalamzaie SM (2010). Menthone and estragole-rich essential oil of cultivated Ocimum basilicum L. from Northwest Iran. Chemija, 21: 59-62. Jirovetz L, Buchbauer G (2001). Analysis, chemotype and quality control of the essential oil of a new cultivated basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) plant from Bulgaria. Scientia Pharmaceutica, 69: 8589. Lakhani VJ, Sudborough JJ (1916). The determination of the iodine values of fats and oils by Winklers Bromate method. 174-177.

McIntosh and Charles (1853). The Book of the Garden Edinbugh and London: W.Blackwood. Mondello L, Zappia G, Cotroneo A, Bonaccorsi IJU, Chowdhury MU, Dugo G (2002). Studies on the chemical oil-bearing plants of Bangladesh. Part VIII. Composition of some Ocimum oils, O. basilicum L. var. purpurascens; O. sanctum L. green; O. sanctum L. purple; O. americanum L., citral type; O. americanum L., camphor type. Flavour and Fragrance Journal, 17: 335340. Muenscher, Conrad W, Arthur M (1978). Garden Spice and Wild Pot Herbs. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Narendhirakannan RT, Subramanian S, Kandaswamy M (2006). Biochemical evaluation of antidiabetogenic properties of some commonly used Indian plants on streptozotocin- induced diabetes in experimental rats. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol., 33: 1150-7. Silva MR, Paula JR (2005). Antifungal activity of Ocimum gratissimum towards dermatophytes. Mycoses., 48: 172-5. Simon JE, Quinn J, Murray RG (1990). Basil: A Source of Essential Oils. In: Janick J, Simon JE (eds) Advances in New Crops (Proceedings of the First National Symposium NEW CROPS: Research, Development, Economics, Indianapolis, Indiana, October, 1988). Timber Press, Portland, Oregon. 484489. Suchorska K, Osinska E (1992). Variability of the purple and the lettuce-leaved sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.). Herba Polonica. XXXVIII: 175181. Trevisan MT, Owen RW (2006). Characterization of the volatile pattern and antioxidant capacity of essential oils from different species of the genus Ocimum. J Agic Food Chem., 54: 4378-82. Zheljazkov VD, Callahan AN, Cantrell CL (2007). Yield and oil composition of 38 basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) accessions grown in Mississippi. J. Agric. Food Chem., 56: 241245.

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Syeda Khair-ul-Bariyah did her M.Sc. (Organic Chemistry) from Government College University, Lahore, Pakistan in the year 2007 and completed her M.Phil (Organic/Biochemistry) from Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore, Pakistan in the year 2011. She has publications in both national and international journals. Her main areas of research and interest are medicinal plants, drug discovery and modification. Being a teacher she is also a graduate in education and currently a masters student of education working on effective teaching methodologies.

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