Chemical variability in the essential oil of Hyptis suaveolens

The essential oils of Hyptis suaveolens plants collected from 11 localities of the Brazilian Cerrado region were investigated by GC-MS. Sabinene, limo nene, biclyclogermacrene, beta -phellandrene and 1,8-cineole were the princ ipal constituents. The results were submitted to principal component and ch emometric cluster analysis which allowed three groups of essential oils to be distinguished with respect to the content of p-mentha-2,4(8)-diene, limo nene/beta -phellandrene/gamma -terpinene and germacrene D/bicyclogermacrene . In patterns of geographic variation in essential oil composition indicate d that the sesquiterpenes are mainly produced in the samples grown at lower latitudes. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.