Effect of Naphthaleneacetic acid and Spermidine on Essential Oil Constituents of German Chamomile

ABSTRACT: German chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.), member of Compositae family, is one of the important medicinal plants. The biological activity of chamomile is mainly due to the phenolic compounds and principal components of the essential oil extracted from the flowers like ?-bisabolol and its oxides and azulenes, including chamazulene. One of the factors influencing essential oil production is plant growth regulators. This experiment carried out by spraying of naphthaleneacetic acid (50 and 100 mg/l) or spermidine (50 and 100 mg/l) at the vegetative stage, and compared to control. The study was conducted using a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Thirty components were identified in chamomile oil. The major components were ?-Bisabolol oxide A, Chamazulene, ?-Bisabolone oxide A, En-in-dicycloether and ?-Bisabolol oxide B. All treatments altered oil constituents. It is possible that the application of growth regulators which affect oil components be due to their effects on enzymatic pathways of terpenoid biosynthesis.