The essential-oil composition of six native populations of Sideritis scardica from Bulgaria was studied by GC-FID and GC/MS analyses. Altogether, 37 components, representing 73.1 to 79.2% of the total oil content were identified. Among them, α-pinene (4.4-25.1%), β-pinene (2.8-18.0%), oct-1-en-3-ol (2.3-8.0%), phenylacetaldehyde (0.5-9.5%), β-bisabolene (1.3-11.0%), benzyl benzoate (1.1-14.3%), and m-camphorene (1; 0.3-12.4%) were the main compounds. All samples were characterized by low contents of oxygenated mono- and sesquiterpenes (≤1.6 and 2.3%, resp.). Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) showed a significant variability in the chemical composition of the studied samples as well as a correlation between the oil profiles and the ecological conditions of the natural habitats of S. scardica.
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