CONTENT AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ESSENTIAL OIL OF "ALECRIM-PIMENTA" IN MANAUS, AMAZONAS STATE, BRAZIL

Lippia sidoides Cham., a large shrub to small tree, is typical of the scrub vegetation of the Brazilian northeast. The leaves of this plant are rich in essential oil with content reaching 4.5%. The primary oil constituent is thymol, which has antimicrobial activity against fungi and bacteria. Due to the importance of the oil, this species has been cultivated throughout Brazil. In the Amazon, the plant has developed well to local conditions, producing high biomass and satisfactory growth. The objective of this study was to investigate the essential oil content and chemical constituents of plants cultivated under the conditions of Manaus, AM. One-year-old plants, obtained from stems and fertilized every six months with organic fertilizer (cow manure - 2 kg/m²), were cut during the in the reproductive phase and taken to the Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Medicinal Plants of Embrapa Western Amazon. After separation, two leaf samples of 20.0 g were used to determine moisture content by drying to a constant weight in an oven at 65°C for three days. Two additional leaf samples of 100 g each were used to determine essential oil content and constituents. The essential oil yield, 4.36%, was expressed on dry weight basis. The major oil constituents were thymol - 76.6%, ortho-cymene - 6.3%, β-caryophyllene - 5.0%, γ-terpinene - 2.0%, myrcene - 1.1%, 4-terpineol - 1% and timile-methyl ether - 1%. Constituents below 1.0% were identified as: α-thugene, pinene, γ-terpinene, limonene, 1,8-cineole, ipsdienol, umbelulone, α-terpineol, α-copaene, aromadendrene, ledeno, δ-cadinene and caryophyllene oxide. The content of essential oil and the oil constituents showed values close to that found in conditions in which the local species naturally occur.