Relevant Issues of Standardisation of Herbal Drugs and Herbal Drug Preparations Containing Essential Oils

Essential oils are a common group of bioactive compounds, yet their standardisation remains relevant.

The aim of the study was to compare pharmacopoeial approaches to the standardisation of herbal drugs and herbal drug preparations containing essential oils using the examples of the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation (14th edition) and the European Pharmacopoeia (10th edition).

The advantages of Russian pharmacopoeial approaches include testing for additional groups of bioactive compounds that contribute significantly to the pharmacotherapeutic effect of extractive preparations. The main compendial method for the component analysis of essential oils is gas chromatography with a flame ionisation detector; its limitations include the need for a considerable number of reference standards. The essential oil content limits established by the two pharmacopoeias for the same types of herbal drugs are not the same. The differences may be associated with differences in sample preparation conditions and analytical procedures for the determination of essential oil content, as well as with growth conditions of plants used to obtain data sets for the standardisation of this quality attribute. As a particular medicinal plant may have several chemotypes differing in the essential oil composition, it seems relevant to consider this composition in the studies of pharmacological activity of herbal drugs associated with essential oils.

1. Tkachenko KG. Essential oils plants and essential oils: progress and perspectives, modern tendencies of research and application. Bulletin of the Udmurt University. Biology & Earth Sciences. 2011;(1):88– 100 (In Russ.).

2. Raut J, Karuppayil SM. A status review on the medicinal properties of essential oils. Ind Crops Prod. 2014;62:250–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2014.05.055

3. Dmitrieva VL, Dmitriev LB. Study of the composition of essential oils of essential oil plants of the nonchernozem zone of Russia. Izvestiya of Timiryazev Agricultural Academy. 2011;(3):106–19 (In Russ.).

4. Werker E, Putievsky E, Ravid U. The essential oils and glandular hairs in different chemotypes of Origanum vulgare L. Ann Bot. 1985;55(6):793–801. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aob.a086958

5. Hüsnü K, Başer C, Demirci F. Chemistry of essential oils. In: Berger RG, ed. Flavours and Fragrances: Chemistry, Bioprocessing and Sustainability. Berlin: Springer; 2007. P. 43–86. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-49339-6_4

6. Nakatsu T, Lupo AT, Chinn JW, Kang RKL. Biological activity of essential oils and their constituents. Stud Nat Prod Chem. 2000;21:571–631. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1572-5995(00)80014-9

7. Carson CF, Hammer KA. Chemistry and bioactivity of essential oils. In: Thormar H, ed. Lipids and Essential Oils as Antimicrobial Agents. UK: John Wiley & Sons; 2011. P. 203–38.

8. Bakkali F, Averbeck S, Averbeck D, Idaomar M. Biological effects of essential oils — a review. Food Chem Toxicol. 2008;46(2):446–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2007.09.106

9. Isman MB, Wilson JA, Bradbury R. Insecticidal activities of commercial rosemary oils (Rosmarinus officinalis) against larvae of Pseudaletia unipuncta and Trichoplusia ni in relation to their chemical compositions. Pharmaceut Biol. 2008;46(1–2):82–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/13880200701734661

10. Ashour ML, Wink M, Gershenzon J. Biochemistry of terpenoids: monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and diterpenes. In: Wink M, ed. Annual Plant Reviews. Volume 40: Biochemistry of Plant Secondary Metabolism. 2nd ed. UK: John Wiley & Sons; 2010. P. 258–303. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444320503.ch5

11. Hussain AI, Anwar F, Hussain Sherazi ST, Przybyl ski R. Chemical composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of basil (Ocimum basilicum) essential oils depends on seasonal variations. Food Chem. 2008;108(3):986–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.12.010

12. Carson CF, Hammer KA, Riley TV. Melaleuca alternifolia (Tea Tree) oil: a review of antimicrobial and other medicinal properties. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2006;19(1):50–62. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.19.1.50-62.2006

13. Do T, Hadji-Minaglou F, Antoniotti S, Fernandez X. Authenticity of essential oils. TrAC Trends Anal Chem. 2015;66:146–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trac.2014.10.007

14. Oprean R, Tamas M, Sandulescu R, Roman L. Essential oils analysis. I. Evaluation of essential oils composition using both GC and MS fingerprints. J Pharm Biomed Anal. 1998;18(4–5):651–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0731-7085(98)00283-0

15. Smelcerovic A, Djordjevic A, Lazarevic J, Stojano vić G. Recent advances in analysis of essential oils. Curr Anal Chem. 2012;9(1):61–70. https://doi.org/10.2174/1573411011309010061

16. Mockute D, Bernotiene G, Judzentiene A. The essential oil of Origanum vulgare L. ssp. vulgare growing wild in Vilnius district (Lithuania). Phytochemistry. 2001;57(1):65–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0031-9422(00)00474-x

17. Morshedloo MR, Salami SA, Nazeri V, Maggi F, Chacker L. Essential oil profile of oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) populations grown under similar soil and climate conditions. Ind Crops Prod. 2018;119:183–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2018.03.049

18. Boyko E. Quality assessment of plant materials of Origanum vulgare L. Proceedings of the Nikitsky Botanical Garden. 2011;133:28–40 (In Russ.).

19. Galovičová L, Borotová P, Valková V, Vukovic NL, Vukic M, Terentjeva M, et al. Thymus serpyllum essential oil and its biological activity as a modern food preserver. Plants. 2021;10(7):1416. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10071416

20. Satyal P, Murray BL, McFeeters RL, Setzer WN. Essential oil characterization of Thymus vulgaris from various geographical locations. Foods. 2016;5(4):70. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods5040070

21. Kurkina AV. Flavonoids of pharmacopoeial plants. Samara: Ofort; 2012 (In Russ.).