全 文 ： 2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 553
Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines 2013, 11(5): 05530559
doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1009.2013.00553
Chinese
Journal of
Natural
Medicines
Investigating the altitude effect on the quantity and quality
of the essential oil in Tanacetum polycephalum
Sch.-Bip. polycephalum in the Baladeh region
of Nour, Iran
Mahdavi, M. 1, Jouri, M.H 1*, Mahmoudi, J. 1, Rezazadeh, F. 2, Mahzooni-Kachapi, S.S. 2
1The Natural Resources Department, The Islamic Azad University, Nour Branch, Nour, Mazandaran, Iran;
2The Natural Resources Department, The Islamic Azad University, Nour Branch, Nour, Mazandaran, Iran
Available online 20 Sept. 2013
[ABSTRACT] Medicinal plant are grown and produced in different ecosystems and sites under the influence of different potential
factors, including the altitude as one of the vital determinants in the quantity and quality of the plants. One of the species that grows in
the highlands is Tanacetum polycephalum, an aromatic perennial of the Asteraceae. This species is characterized to be antiseptic, anal-
gesic, anesthetic, disinfective, expectorant, anti-cancer, anti-allergic, and conducive to low blood pressure. The purpose of this study is
to investigate the essential compositions in the aerial parts of T. polycephalum at the time of flowering, and in three different altitudes
of the Baladeh region of Nour. Thus, the essential oil was extracted from the aerial parts in the flowering stage of the plant at three
altitudes of 1 600, 2 400 and 3 200 m using a water distillation method, and the essential oil compositions were identified using GC and
GC/MS instruments. One-way ANOVA method was conducted to analyze the obtained data using SPSS, and a Duncan test was admin-
istered to compare the means. The results indicated that the essential output obtained from the altitudes of 1 600, 2 400 and 3 200 m
was (0.74 ± 0.01)%, (1.09 ± 0.02)%, and (1.32 ± 1.2)%, respectively, so that the altitude of 3 200 m revealed the greatest quantity, and
the altitude of 1 600 m represented the smallest quantity. Moreover, the essential oil compositions showed the highest percentage in the
altitude of 3 200 m and the lowest percentage at the altitude of 1 600 m. The results showed that as the altitude increases, the essential
oil compositions revealed the greater quantity and percentage in the aerial parts of T. polycephalum.
[KEY WORDS] Essential oil; Tanacetum polycephalum; Essential oil production; Essential oil composition
[CLC Number] R917 [Document code] A [Article ID] 1672-3651(2013)05-0553-07
1 Introduction
There are 7 500-8 000 plant species in Iran, a country
with different climates and areas that have brought about a
variety of ecotypes of different plant species [6]. Plants may
contain naturally-produced medicines for human diseases,
which nature has made available for humans. Despite the
great developments in modern pharmaceutical drugs that
have saved human beings from different kinds of illnesses, it
is impossible to overlook the role of the plants and their posi-
[Received on] 21-Jun.-2012
[Research funding] This project was supported by the research fund
from the Research Deputy section.
[*Corresponding author] Jouri, M.H.: Assistant prof., E-mail:
mjouri@gmail.com
These authors have no conflict of interest to declare.
tive effects. The active agents present in plants have always
been, and will continue to be, used as irreplaceable sub-
stances [6].
Although the growth and the increase in the quantity and
quality of the substance in medicinal plants takes place
mainly due to genetic processes, environmental factors also
play a major role in this regard. Such factors help to bring
about certain changes in the growth of medicinal plants, as
well as changes in the quantity and quality of the active sub-
stances [16]. The growth and function of medicinal plants in
the ecosystems are influenced by different factors, such as the
species, climate, soil, altitude, and geographical area, and
each factor has a substantial effect on the quantity and quality.
Altitude has a vital role in the growth and production of me-
dicinal plants in a variety of natural ecosystems and areas [8],
and is also among the determinants in their quantity and
quality [11]. Similarly, physiographical factors, capable of
Mahdavi, M., et al. /Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines 2013, 11(5): 553559
554 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期
influencing the amount of moisture, chemical properties of
the soil, and others effects, play an important role in the dis-
tribution of medicinal plant species [6].
The plants of the Tanacetum genus (Asteraceae) are
perennials and forb types, and have covers with simple
corks. A strong, peppermint-like scent is detectible from
their aerial parts [12]. Plants of this genus have been used
medicinally for two centuries and have anti-tumor and an-
tiseptic properties [2, 7]. In Iran, there are 26 species of this
genus known as permanent forb, and sometimes bush, types.
One of these is Tanacetum polycephalum Sch.-Bip., an
aromatic perennial [12]. It has antiseptic, analgesic, anes-
thetic, disinfective, expectorant, anti-cancer, anti-allergic,
and anti-irritant properties, and can also reduce blood pres-
sure [3, 15]. The herb is geographically distributed in Europe,
Iran, Iraq, Anatolia, Caucasia, Turkmenistan, Siberia, Af-
ghanistan, Mongolia, Tibet, Himalaya, and Turkey [18].
Studies (e.g. [9]) that explored the altitude effect on the
Thymus kotschyanus Boiss. & Hohen. (Lamiaceae) in its
natural habitats (1 800 to 2 800 m) in the southern flank of
the Elborz Mountain revealed that the amount of extracted
essential oil differed at different altitudes. It was shown that
the altitude of 2 800 m showed the highest essential oil
composition, while the altitude of 1 800 m indicated the
least amount, and as the altitude increased, the essential oil
percentage decreased, but the total essential oil composi-
tions rose. Moreover, the results of other studies (e.g., [9])
that investigated the quantity and quality of essential oil in
three different regions of Damavand demonstrated that the
amount of essential oil in thyme (T. kotschyanus) was dif-
ferent in the various regions, and it was reported that as the
altitude increased, the percentage, as well as the total essen-
tial oil composition decreased. The study carried out by
Kazemizadeh et al. [10] reported differences in the quantity
and quality of the essential compositions in the aerial parts
of Teucrium hyrcanicum Steud. (Lamiaceae) in two regions
(Khalkhal Road to Asalem and Rostamabad in Guilan
province) and at two altitudes, 1 000 and 1 300 m, which
arose from the ecologic differences in the growing areas
(climate and altitude).
In an investigation of the effect of environmental fac-
tors on Cymbopogon olivieri (Boiss.) Bor (Poaceae) in four
regions, Sarbaz, Jiruft, Dezfool, and Masjid Soleiman, Mir-
jalili et al [12] concluded that the nearby altitudes of
300-600 m in the regions of Masjid Soleiman and Jiruft
had a greater effect on the function of the essential oil in the
lemongrass. It was demonstrated by Yazdani et al [22] that
the percenttage essential oil of Mentha piperita Stokes
(Lamiaceae) from six growing areas depended on the envi-
ronmental conditions and varied from 1.45% to 3.2%, and
was influenced by different environmental factors, such as
altitude and the daylight period. The identification of the
chemical composition of Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam.
(Lamiaceae) in different altitudes in several areas indicated
that there were different composition percentages at differ-
ent altitudes and areas, and that other environmental factors,
such as soil, also had a role in the differences [4]. The pre-
sent report attempts to identify the altitude factors that in-
fluence the quantity and quality of the essential oil of T.
polycephalum, as well as the optimal altitude to produce the
greatest amount of active substances.
2 Materials and Procedures
2.1 Plant collection and essential oil extraction
In this study, the aerial parts of T. polycephalum were
collected at a time of flowering from three natural areas lo-
cated in the Baladeh region of Nour (Mazadaran Province) at
three altitudes of 1 600, 2 400, and 3 200 m, and in two rep-
lications in June-July, 2011. The freshly extracted herb was
dried in the laboratory setting. A sample (65 g) of the aerial
parts of the plant was extracted using a Clevenger apparatus
through water distillation for 3 hours. In order for the essen-
tial oil not to be mixed with water, 1 liter of pentane was
poured into the storage inlet of the essential oil. Considering
the moisture percentage, the essential output was measured in
dry weight (W/W). The essential oil, when extracted, was
collected and distilled using sodium sulfate, and kept at 4 °C
until it was injected into GC.
2.2 Essential analysis
The extracted essential oil was first injected into the GC;
then, the most suitable programing of thermal column was
obtained for complete separation of the essential oil. In addi-
tion, the relative percentage of each component was meas-
ured with respect to the peak level in the GC chromatogram.
Then, the essential oil was analyzed using GC/MS in order to
identify its composition [14, 19]. The components were identi-
fied using deterrence indices and mass spectrometry, and
were compared with the standard compositions and the data
in the mass database Wiley275.L [1]. One-way ANOVA was
conducted on the data obtained from the essential oil per-
centage and the chemical compositions using SPSS, and a
Duncan test was administered to compare the means at the
0.01 level.
2.3 Characteristics of the apparatus
2.3.1 Clevenger apparatus The experiment used a
Clevenger apparatus from the Goldis Company in Iran to
extract the essential oil from the sample herb.
2.3.2 Gas Chromatography The experiment employed a
6890N Gas Chromatograph (Agilent, US), with FID detector,
with HP-5 column of 30 m length and 0.25 mm internal di-
ameter, plus with constant phase layer in 0.25 micron. The
conveyer gas was helium and the temperature of the injection
port was 250 °C. Thermal programing was used from 50-250
°C with an increase of 5 °C per minute.
2.3.3 GC/MS In this study, a 5975B GC/MS instrument
(Agilent, US), with 70 volt-electron as detector was also used.
The employed column was a HP-5 with the same thermal
programing as the GC analysis. Relative percentages of each
Mahdavi, M., et al. /Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines 2013, 11(5): 553559
2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 555
component were obtained by the area below the curve from
the GC spectrum.
3 Results
3.1 The efficiency of extraction and percentage of the es-
sential oil components
The components of the essential identified from the ae-
rial parts of the T. polycephalum at the three altitudes 1 600,
2 400, and 3 200 m are shown in Table 3. The percentages
of identified components in the essential of the plant at the
three altitudes were 76.59%, 80.78%, and 87.62%, respec-
tively. The key components of which are α-pinene, cam-
phene, camphor, cineole, terpinen-4-ol, santolina triene,
borneol, and chrysanthenone. In general, as the altitude
increased, the percentage of essential content and the num-
ber of components also rose. The mean of the essential oil
levels in the T. polycephalum samples is shown in Fig. 1,
the analysis of variance in Table 1, and the mean compari-
son in Table 2 and Fig. 2. As indicated in Table 2, the es-
sential oil levels at the altitudes of 1,600, 2,400, and 3,200
m are (0.74 ± 0.01)%, (1.09 ± 0.02)%, and (1.32 ± 1.2)%,
respectively. This is the case where the essential oil level
produced in the given plant at the altitude of 3 200 m
showed the greatest amount (1.32 ± 1.2)% and there was a
statistically significant difference between this altitude and
the other altitudes, while the lowest level of oil occurred at
the altitude of 1 600 m. Overall, as the altitude increased,
the essential oil level rose as well.
Fig. 1 Mean of the essential oil level of Tanacetum polycepha-
lum at three altitudes, in Baladeh, Nour
3.1 Secondary medicinal constituents
In this study, α-pinene varied between (1.67 ± 0.03)%
and (3.38 ± 0.14)%. The mean comparison conducted
through the Duncan test divided the α-pinene concentra-
tions into two groups, the greatest of which is at the alti-
tude of 1 600 m, and is statistically significant. As
described in Table 2, the mean comparison conducted
through the Duncan test divided the percentage of cam-
phene into three groups, the greatest of which was at the
altitude of 1 600 m, and was statistically significant. 1,
8-Cineole levels varied between (14.6 ± 0.09)% and
(26.52 ± 0.67)%. It represented the greatest amount com-
pared to the other components, and was the dominant
component of the plant essential oil. The mean compari-
son conducted through the Duncan test divided 1,
8-cineole into three groups, the greatest of which was at
the altitude of 1 600 m, and was statistically significant.
The composition percentage of santolina triene varied
between (0.50 ± 0.007)% and (2.3 ± 0.03)%. The mean
comparison conducted through the Duncan test divided
the percentage of santolina triene into three groups, the
greatest of which was at the altitude of 2 400 m and was
statistically significant. Another main component of the
essential oil is terpinen-4-ol, which varied between (1.09
± 0.02)% and (2.83 ± 0.04)%. The mean comparison con-
ducted through the Duncan test divided terpinen-4-ol into
three groups, the greatest of which was at the altitude of 3
200 m, and was statistically significant. Borneol is another
main component identified at two altitudes of 1 600 and 2
400 m, but it was not detected at samples from 1 600 m.
Moreover, chrysanthenone was among the fundamental
components at the altitudes of 1 600 and 2 400 m, but was
not identified at the altitude of 3 200 m, and therefore was
not a common component (Table 3).
Fig. 2 Effect of altitude on the percentage of shared and
main compositions of T. polycephalum in Baladeh, Nour
Table 1 ANOVA results from the effect of altitude on
essential oil level and percentage of common and main
components in the essential oil of T. polycephalum
F Variable Sources Source of changes
42.445** Essential oil level
87.948** α-Pinene
106.167** Camphene
448.445** 1, 8-Cineole
3 497.600** Santolina triene
1 016.167** Terpinen-4-ol
Altitude
**P < 0.01 vs three level of altitude
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556 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期
Table 2 Mean comparisons of essential oil level and percentage of common and main compositions of T. polycephalum at
three altitudes of Baladeh, Nour (Mean ±SD, n = 36)
Alti-
tudes/m
Number of
components
Total percentage of
components/%
Essential oil
level/% α-Pinene/% Camphene/% 1, 8-Cineole/%
Santolina
triene/% Terpinen-4-ol/%
1 600 40 76.59 0.74 ± 0.01c 3.38 ± 0.14a 2.99 ± 0.007a 26.52 ± 0.67a 0.50 ± 0.007c 2.74 ± 0.04a
2 400 48 80.78 1.09 ± 0.02b 1.67 ± 0.03b 2.8 ± 0.03b 14.6 ± 0.09c 2.3 ± 0.03a 1.09 ± 0.02b
3 200 51 87.62 1.32 ± 1.2a 3.35 ± 0.2a 2.62 ± 0.02c 18.36 ± 0.19b 0.8 ± 0.02b 2.83 ± 0.04a
**P < 0.01; a, b, and c are used to distinguish the differences between altitude levels. Common letters indicate that there are no significant differ-
ences between two levels.
Table 3 Identification of essential oil compositions of T. polycephalum at three altitudes of Baladeh, Nour (Mean ± SD, n
= 36)
Percentage of component at altitudes
No. Name of component Deterrence index
1 600 m 2 400 m 3 200 m
1 Santolina triene 873 0.50 ± 0.007 2.3 ± 0.03 0.8 ± 0.02
2 Tricyclene 895 0.21 ± 0.007 0.26 ± 0.05 0.57 ± 0.10
3 α-Thujene 905 0.23 ± 0.021 0.13 ± 0.04 0.26 ± 0.05
4 2, 3-Dehydro-1, 8-cineole 909 0.27 ±0.04
5 α-Pinene 915 3.38 ± 0.14 1.67 ± 0.03 3.35 ± 0.2
6 Camphene 936 2.99 ± 0.007 2.8 ± 0.03 2.62 ± 0.02
7 Verbenene 945 0.47 ± 0.13
8 cis-Epoxy-ocimene 952 0.87±0.01
9 Sabinene 976 0.76 ± 0.12 1.89 ± 0.15
10 β-Pinene 979 1.37 ± 0.53 0.33 ± 0.06 0.8 ± 0.19
11 α-Terpinene 1002 0.34 ± 0.05 1.74 ± 0.10
12 O-cymene 1014 0.5 ± 0.09 1.09 ± 0.09
13 1, 8-Cineole 1022 26.52 ± 0.67 14.6 ± 0.09 18.36 ± 0.19
14 2, 7-Dimethyl-4(E), 6-octadien-2-ol 1029 - 2.86 ± 0.18
15 Yomogi alcohol 1035 0.28 ± 0.03 0.3 ± 0.10 0.26 ± 0.13
16 γ-Terpinene 1049 0.84 ± 0.07 0.69 ± 0.12 1.28 ± 0.24
17 trans-Sabinene hydrate 1060 0.35 ± 0.04 1.05 ± 0.11
18 cis-Verbenol 1076 0.35 ± 0.11
19 2, 7-Dimethyl-2, 6-octadien-4-ol 1079 1.77 ± 0.12
20 1, 5-Heptadien-4-ol, 3, 3, 6-trimethyl 1080 0.13 ± 0.04
21 cis-Linalool oxide 1083 0.37 ± 0.10
22 cis-Sabinene hydrate 1094 1.96 ± 1.32 0.8 ± 0.07 1.68 ± 0.16
23 Filifolone 1098 1.01 ± 0.02 0.86 ± 0.08
24 Z-β-Terpineol 1106 0.6 ± 0.02
25 Linalool 1111 0.15 ± 0.07
26 2-Cyclohexen-1-ol, 1-methyl-4-(1-methylethyl) 1128 0.35 ± 0.11
27 Chrysanthenone 1129 4.9 ± 0.14 4.91 ± 0.12
28 1, 3-Cyclohexadiene, 2-methyl-5-(1-methylethyl)-, monoepoxide 1149 10.99 ± 0.16
29 Camphor 1150 18.51 ± 0.54
30 4, 5-Epoxy-1-isopropyl-4-methyl-1 1156 18.2 ± 0.3
31 Bicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-3-one, 6, 6-di methyl-2-methylene 1162 1.82 ± 0.21
32 Pinocarvone 1164 0.78 ± 0.02 1.2 ± 0.13
33 Borneol 1168 16.88 ± 0.31 12.49 ± 0.14
34 Isobornyl 1172 0.23±0.13
35 Sabinol 1173 1.22±0.12
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2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 557
(Contour 3)
Percentage of compositions
No. Name of compositions Deterrence index
1 600 m 2 400 m 3 200 m
36 Terpinene-4-ol 1179 2.74 ± 0.04 1.09 ± 0.02 2.83 ± 0.04
37 α-Thujenal 1184 0.49 ± 0.53 0.14 ± 0.06 0.29 ± 0.13
38 α-Terpineol 1191 1.32 ± 0.24 0.81 ± 0.09 0.66 ± 0.13
39 Myrtenal 1195 0.4 ± 0.12
40 Myrtenol 1197 0.52 ± 0.24 1.29 ± 0.04 0.43 ± 0.10
41 Bicyclo[3.1.1]hept-2-ene-2- carboxaldehyde, 6, 6-dimethyl 1200 1.27 ± 0.25 0.37 ± 0.11
42 Verbenone 1210 0.24 ± 0.07
43 trans-Piperitol 1214 0.18 ± 0.08
44 trans carveol 1232 0.14 ± 0.06 0.17 ± 0.01
45 trans-Pinocarveol 1233 0.17 ± 0.09
46 cis-Ocimene 1240 0.22 ± 0.14
47 Cuminyl aldehyde 1241 0.3 ± 0.28 0.15 ± 0.04
49 Carvol 1249 0.14 ± 0.03 0.08 ± 0.02
50 Chrysanthenyl acetate 1263 0.19 ± 0.04
51 Bornyl acetate 1284 0.51 ± 0.22 1.71 ± 0.14
52 Iso-bornyl acetate 1286 1.68 ± 0.11 0.35 ± 0.10
53 Sabinyl acetate 1292 0.31 ± 0.18 0.29 ± 0.09
54 Thymol 1300 0.64 ± 0.05 0.59 ± 0.13
55 Benzenemethanol, 4-(1-methylethyl) 1302 0.1 ± 0.02
56 1, 3-Cyclopentadiene, 5, 5-dimethyl- 2-ethyl 1322 0.23 ± 0.16
57 Menthofuran 1398 0.32 ± 0.04
58 cis-Jasmone 1402 0.24 ± 0.06
59 Davana furan 1414 0.85 ± 0.07 0.08 ± 0.03
60 Propanoic acid 1419 1.29 ± 0.12
61 Hexahydrofarnesyl acetone 1442 0.17 ± 0.07
62 Homoadamantane 1472 1.24 ± 0.09
63 4-Methyl-2-(3-methyl-2-butenyl)-furan 1483 0.07 ± 0.01 0.18 ± 0.07
64 Davana ether 1516 0.47 ± 0.14 0.85 ± 0.18 0.64 ± 0.11
65 2, 3, 4, 5-Tetramethylthiophene 1528 0.49 ± 0.10
66 2-Fluoro-4-methylanisole 1535 0.41 ± 0.02 0.36 ± 0.07
67 Bicyclo[7.2.0]undec-4-ene-trimethyl-8-methylene 1578 0.31 ±0.06
68 Spathulenol 1581 0.07 ± 0.02 0.31 ± 0.05
69 cis-Davanone 1588 0.1 ± 0.02 1.08 ± 0.05 2.38 ± 0.09
70 5-epi-Neointermedeol 1600 0.65 ± 0.16 0.73 ± 0.07
71 Cyercene 4 1603 0.23 ± 0.02 0.25 ± 0.04 0.18 ± 0.05
72 Naphthalene, 1, 2, 3, 4, 4a, 7-hexahydr o-1, 6-dimethyl-4-(1-methylethyl) 1629 0.3 ± 0.09
73 10, 10-Dimethyl-2, 6-dimethylenebicy clo[7.2.0]undecan-5β-ol 1635 0.36 ± 0.4 0.22 ± 0.09
74 Caryophylla-4(12), 8(13)-dien-5β-ol 1640 0.14 ± 0.03 0.15 ± 0.05 0.87 ± 0.12
75 β-Eudesmol 1652 0.39 ± 0.07 0.13 ± 0.07
76 Caryophyllenol-II 1678 0.08 ± 0.01
77 Davanone 1693 1.65 ± 0.09
78 5-Acetyl-4, 7-dimethoxy-6-hydroxybe 1757 0.28 ± 0.09
79 Hexadecanoic acid 1968 0.08 ± 0.01 0.3 ± 0.05 0.76 ± 0.12
Total 76.59 80.78 87.62
Number of components 40 48 51
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558 Chin J Nat Med Sept. 2013 Vol. 11 No. 5 2013年 9月 第 11卷 第 5期
4 Discussion and conclusions
The growth and production of medicinal plants in natural
ecosystems and in different areas, and the production of their
secondary medicinal metabolites are considerably influenced
by environmental conditions [6, 17]. This is an important factor
that changes in altitude and habitat can alter many ecophysi-
ological outcomes [20]. The results from this study indicated
that as the altitudes in the Baladeh area increased, the essen-
tial oil level and the number of essential oil components also
increased, which can be caused by the change in the amount
of moisture and available water, x-rays, and temperature, as
well as daylight period [20]. Concomitant with the present
study, Habibi et al. [8] and Jamshidi et al. [7] also reported that
the essential output of Thymus kotschyanus differed in dif-
ferent altitudes, but as the altitude increasesd, the amount of
essential oil dropped. In a similar vein, Yazdani et al. [21]
argued that the essential oil of peppermint (M. piperita) was
different because of the altitude and irregular daylight. The
results also showed that camphor was one of the main essen-
tial oil components at an altitude of 1 600 m, and was not
identified at other altitudes. Borneol was also characterized
as the main composition at 2 400 and 3 200 m, and it was not
identified in the sample at from 1 600 m. In addition, chry-
santhenone was found to be a key component in two altitudes
of 1 600 and 2 400 m, but it was not detected at an altitude of
3 200 m, and was not a common component either.
Findings from the present study that explored the effect
of altitude on the percentage of essential compositions re-
vealed that the altitude effect on the percentage of composi-
tion is statistically significant at the 0.01 level, so that as the
altitude increased and the sunlight intensity dropped, the
percentage of camphene, α-terpineol, and hexadecanoic acid
were also reduced. Moreover, the greatest increase in active
medicinal reagent consistent with the increase due to the
altitude concerned 1, 8-cineole, and the smallest increase was
associated with santolina triene. At all three altitudes in
Baladeh, 1, 8-cineole showed the highest percentage and was
the prototypical composition of the medicinal plant. The dif-
ference in the type and percentage of components was very
distinct because of the difference in temperature, relative
moisture, wind speed, the amount of the available water, the
degree of gained sunlight and x-rays in three altitudes. The
altitude effects on plant have been seen in the studies of
Habibi et al. [8] and Jamshidi et al. [7] on T. kotschyanus, Ka-
zemizadeh et al.s [10] on T. hyrcanicum, and Dehghan et al.
(2010) on blue mint bush (Ziziphora clinopodioides). They
demonstrated similar results, and in line with the present
research, reported different percentage of essential oil com-
positions at different altitudes. Knowledge of the composi-
tions of the indigenous medicinal plants in Iran can assist in
employing the medicinal plant resources. For example, the
results obtained from investigating the essentials oils can
assist in standardizing the medicinal products. In addition,
further studies are recommended because of the geographical
variations in Iran, and the vast distribution of T. polycepha-
lum in Mazandaran province, as well as the various applica-
tions of the medicinal plant.
Acknowledgement
We appreciate Mr. Ali Falah, Research Vice Chancellor,
and Dr. Sadrodin Motevali, as principal of Islamic Azad
University of Nour branch for their support.
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