Cytotoxic, anti-carcinogenic and antioxidant properties of the most frequent plant volatiles

Abstract

Flowers, berries, leaves, barks and roots of different plants have been used through the ages as a source of flavor in food and perfume preparations. The volatiles responsible for the flavor of botanicals can be extracted from the plant material as "essential oils" (EOs), called also volatile oils or ethereal oils. The term essential is intended to indicate that the oil is the fragrant essence of the plant from which it is extracted. EOs are constituted by hydrocarbons (monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes) and oxygenated compounds (alcohols, esters, ethers, aldehydes, ketones, lactones, phenols and phenol ethers). Of the numerous groups of naturally occurring compounds examined so far terpenes are known as fragrances and flavoring agents. The data reported in this review including the data obtained in our laboratory show that many of EOs exhibit a range of biological activities inclusive of antioxidative, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic activities. Most of them belong to phytochemicals with chemopreventive potential. On the other hand some herbal products can cause serious adverse effects. A complex research of toxic, genotoxic, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic effects of EOs is therefore very important.