Chemical composition of essential oils from aerial parts ofCinnamomum malabatrum(Burman f.) Bercht & Presl.

Abstract The constituents of the essential oils of leaf, petiole, shoot and terminal shoot of Cinnamomum malabatrum were determined by GC and GC–MS. Thirty‐nine compounds, constituting 95% of the oil, were identified in the leaves. Major constituents of the leaf oil were ( E )‐caryophyllene (28.6%), ( E )‐cinnamyl acetate (15.1%), bicyclogermacrene (14.4%) and benzyl benzoate (8.5%). Twenty‐eight compounds, representing 98% and 97% of the oil, were identified in the petioles and shoots, respectively, whereas in the oil of the terminal shoots 34 compounds, accounting for 97%, were identified. The essential oils of the petioles, shoots and terminal shoots were dominated by linalool (77.8−79.4%). This is the first report of the essential oil constituents of C. malabatrum . Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.