Chemical Diversity in Essential Oils of 40 Artemisia Species from Western and Trans Himalayan Regions of India

The genus Artemisia L. (tribe Anthemidea), belonging to the family Asteraceae, has a rich diversity of essential oil-bearing species distributed throughout the Western Himalayan (WH) and Trans-Himalayan (TH) regions of India. The present study evaluated the essential oils of the eighty-one accessions representing 40 Artemisia spp. from India’s WH and TH regions for their essential oil yield, chemical composition, and variability among and within the species. The essential oil yield ranged between 0.02% and 1.65%. One hundred fifty-five major compounds identified by GC-MS technique accounted for 81–100% of the total oil composition in the studied accessions. 1,8-cineole, thujone, camphor, artemisia ketone, borneol, and caryophyllene were present in most of the studied Artemisia accessions. Results of PCA indicated that the first two components contributed 42.31% of total variation and showed a significant positive correlation with thujone, camphor, 1,8-cineole, caryophyllene oxide, caryophyllene, borneol, artemisia ketone, and p-cymene. Based on the chemical composition of essential oil, different accessions were grouped into two major clusters and subdivided into several subgroups. The study has identified many new chemotypes of Artemisia spp. with industrial potential that had not been studied before in this region. Based on the results, new agro-technologies may be developed using Artemisia spp. of commercial interest.