Phytochemical Profiling and Antioxidant Activity of Dracocephalum officinale (Blue-Flowered Form) Cultivated in Ukraine

Dracocephalum officinale (L.) Y.P. Chen & B.T. Drew, previously known by the synonym Hyssopus officinalis L., is an essential oil-bearing plant found in the wild in the Eastern Mediterranean and Central Asia. While its health benefits are primarily based on folklore rather than scientific evidence, it has not been included in any of the world’s Pharmacopoeias. Today, there are numerous subspecies, forms, and chemotypes of this species. This study aimed to investigate the potential medicinal value of a blue-flowered form of Dracocephalum officinale cultivated in Ukraine, based on the results of its phytochemical analysis and DPPH free radical scavenging activity. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis was used to ascertain the qualitative content and quantity of volatile chemicals. For the chromatographic analysis of phenolic acids, a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was employed. The herb was extracted using 80% methanol in an ultrasonic bath at 45°C both for HPLC analysis and spectrophotometric assay of antioxidant activity using 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). A total of 40 volatile compounds were identified in the essential oil of Dracocephalum officinale using GC/MS. The primary components of the essential oil included pinocamphone (27.55%), isopinocamphone (15.55%), β-pinene (7.68%), germacrene D (4.76%), α-sabinene (4.62%), myrtenol (4.32%), and γ-elemene (4.10%). High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed the presence of nine phenolic acids in an 80% methanolic extract of the studied herb, with rosmarinic acid (19.942 mg/g) and caffeic acid (2.851 mg/g) being the most prevalent. The study conducted on the antioxidant effect of the Dracocephalum officinale extract found a moderate scavenging effect on DPPH free radicals, with the IC50 value of 1.65 mg/mL. This study concludes that further pharmacological research and the development of phytochemicals from Dracocephalum officinale in different dosage forms represent promising areas for future investigation.