Composition and Chemical Variability in the Essential Oil from Leaves of Memora nodosa (Silva Manso) Miers

The essential oils from leaves of Memora nodosa collected from seven localities of Central Brazilian Cerrado were investigated by GC and GC/MS. Benzaldehyde and 1-octen-3-ol were the major constituents. The results were submitted to Principal Component and Cluster analysis which allowed two groups of oils to be distinguished with respect to sampling site and chemical constituent: cluster I (leaves from Goiânia, Rio Verde, Nerópolis, and Uberlândia sites) containing (E)-2-hexenal (0.3–1.2%) and the highest percentage of 1-octen-3-ol (5.5–8.4%), and cluster II (leaves from Paraúna, Senador Canedo, and Caldas Novas sites) with the highest percentage of benzaldehyde (91.8–94.2%). A strong correlation was obtained between the oil constituent and the geographical coordinates of sampling sites. 1-Octen-3-ol was mainly produced in ecotypes with high altitudes.