PHYTOCHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE ESSENTIAL OIL AND HYDROLATES OF Veronica officinalis L. AND Veronica urticifolia Jacq

Plants of the genus Veronica (family Plantaginaceae) are used in traditional medicines in countries around the world. This sparked interest in studying these plants in terms of their chemical composition and biological activity. Veronica officinalis L., and Veronica urticifolia Jacq. which are the subject of this study, are traditionally used in the medicine of Balkan peoples. The objective of this study was to investigate free volatile compounds (FVCs) of Veronica urticifolia and. V. officinalis species especially in the terms of comparing FVCs from essential oil (EO) and from water residues (hydrolates, HY) and also discussing differences and similarities in the composition considering different plant material collection locations. Hydrolates are condensed water vapours containing dissolved molecules of EOs and more water-soluble (polar) FVCs. For the purposes of this research, EOs and HY were isolated by water distillation of dry plant material of the species V. urticifolia and V. officinalis in a Clevenger type apparatus. These plant species were collected in different areas in the territory of the Republic of Croatia. The phytochemical composition of FVCs was determined by GC and GC-MS analysis of isolated EO and HY, and the relative percentage of the identified compounds were calculated. The individual peaks for all samples were identified by comparison of their retention indices of n-alkanes to those of authentic samples and literature. The most abundant compound In EO of V. officinalis collected in Lokve - Mali raj (Site 1) was hexadecanoic acid (49.5%) whereas in the material collected in Zagreb (Site 2) heptacosane (25.1%), hexahydropharnesyl acetone (phyton) (21.8%) and phytol (17.1%) were the main components. The most common compounds in HY of V. officinalis from the Sites 1 and 2 were hexadecanoic acid (34.1% ; 30.3%), phytol (17.3% ; 23.3%) and phyton (14.5%: 18.5%), respectively. In the EO of V. urticifolia collected in Mala Kapela (Site 1) and Zelin Crnoluški (Site 2) the most common compounds were hexadecanoic acid (28.3% ; 30.3%), phyton (20.2% ; 18.5%), heptacosan (17.9%, 17.2%) and phytol (15.4% ; 20.3%), respectively. The most common compounds in the HY of this species from the mentioned localities were phyton (35.9% ; 40.3%), hexadecanoic acid (22.9%) and phytol (20.3% ; 21.1%), respectively.