Essential oils of four species of Marsypianthes (Lamiaceae) were investigated via gas chromatography and multivariate analysis. Each species was represented by two to seven populations, totaling seventeen populations. β-Elemene, (E)-caryophyllene, α-humulene, germacrene D, bicyclogermacrene, δ-cadinene, spathulenol, caryophyllene oxide, and globulol were found in all samples. Principal component and hierarchical cluster analyses revealed the presence of two sections, one containing M. chamaedrys/M. montana (section A) and the other M. burchellii (section B). M. foliolosa showed higher complexity, being divided in both sections. Similar results were obtained according to biosynthetic carbon skeletons. Germacranes and bicyclogermacranes predominated in section A, whereas aromadendranes, bourbonanes and guaianes characterized section B. Canonical redundancy analysis revealed that clusters were not influenced by edaphic factors in sampling sites.
Marsypianthes; essential oils; chemical variability; chemotaxonomy
