Chemoprofiling of essential oils from Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat. flowers: Delineation of genotypic variations for industrial applications

This study investigates the industrial potential of essential oils derived from Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat . , focusing on genotypic variation and phytochemical diversity. A total of 120 chrysanthemum genotypes were screened for essential oil content and floral traits, of which 23 high-yielding genotypes were selected for further studies. Essential oils were extracted using hydro-distillation and delineated the presence of industrially valuable compounds by GC-MS. Among the genotypes studied, 'Liliput' exhibited the highest oil content (1.56 % ± 0.02 on a dry weight basis). Correlation analysis revealed strong positive relationships between flower number, flower yield, and oil yield per plant, suggesting potential for breeding programs aimed at maximizing oil production. Phytochemical profiling of these 23 genotypes revealed valuable industrial compounds, including α-pinene (12.10–17.83 %), camphene (1.40–3.69 %), eucalyptol (8.50–12.85 %), cis-chrysanthenol (10.20–16.03 %), (1S)-camphor (31.80–45.94 %), and endo-borneol (25.70–40.38 %). Heatmap analysis categorized the genotypes into four groups based on relative abundance of these compounds. The diverse phytochemical composition highlights the potential of chrysanthemum essential oils for broad industrial applications, particularly in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and functional foods, where these bioactive compounds offer significant value for product development and innovation. • Chrysanthemum morifolium genotypes (120) have been screened for higher essential oil content and floriferous traits. • Out of 120 genotypes, 23 genotypes manifested higher essential oil content coupled with floriferous traits. • Essential oil content in C. morifolium genotypes (23) ranged from 1.56 ± 0.02 (liliput) to 0.32 ± 0.0014 (OPCH-12–7). • C. morifolium essential oil showed α-pinene content, camphene, eucalyptol, cis-chrysanthenol, (1S)-camphor, endo-borneol.