CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ESSENTIAL OILS FROM Juniperus communis FRUITS IN ALBANIA

The aim of the present study was to determine the chemical composition of essential oils extracted from Juniperus communis blue-black seed cones growing wild in three different areas in Albania. Sampling was made in Southeast Albania, in Rrajca, Martanesh and Mount Tomorr areas. The analytical technique, liquid-liquid extraction, was followed by gas chromatography peak identification. The GC/FID analyses revealed more than 70 constituents and contents of 18 major compounds were reported in this work. The monoterpene hydrocarbons ranged from 59.7 to 67%, oxygenated monoterpenes ranged from 1.9 to 4.4%, while sesquiterpenes vary from 13.173 to 16.7%. Essential oils extracted from Juniperus communis L. fruits growing in these three different areas show significant differences in their chemical composition mainly due to their geographic locations.