Souleima F. Hachicha, Thouraya Skanji, Sami Barrek, Hédi Zarrouk,* and Zeineb G. Ghrabi

Abstract: The chemical composition of the essential oil obtained from Teucrium alopecurus De Noé, an endemic limited to Matmata (southern Tunisia) was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Fifty-seven components were identified; the predominant compounds of the oil of Teucrium alopecurus were mainly sesquiterpenes hydrocarbons (61.3%) and oxygenated sesquiterpenes (26.9%); δ-cadinene (13.4%), nerolidyl acetate (12.3%), α-humulene (12.3%), α-guaiene (10.3%) and β-caryophyllene (8.2%).

The genus Teucrium (Lamiaceae family) comprises some 200 species (1) mostly in the Mediterranean basin with 220 taxa (2), nineteen of which grow in Tunisia (3–5). Teucrium alopecurus de Noé is an endemic limited to the region of Matmata (southern Tunisia) (2). This species grows wild in lower arid mediterranean bioclimate with moderate winter. T. alopecurus is a small under-shrub with grey rosy trained branches, having reddish, dense floral clusters looking like a fox tail, and for that it’s called “Germandrée queue de renard” in French. It is found in calcareous rocky regions and rocky steppes (5). Various species of the genus Teucrium are known for their medicinal value in folk medicine for more than 2,000 years (6,7). In Tunisia, (8) as in many other countries such as Corsica, Iran, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, Spain, Portugal and Cyprus (7, 9–16), this genus has often been used as an antispasmodic, antimalarial, antipyretic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drug. Several morphological, caryological and chemical studies have been reported about the Teucrium genus which has a very complex taxonomy depending on places and regions where it grows.