Effect of Drying on the Volatiles of Leaves of Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng

Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng, Indian curry leaf plant is widely used in households for imparting a characteristic flavour to Indian dishes. The plant is reported to have significant medicinal value. The essential oil and dried leaves are exported to several countries due to its importance for culinary and medicinal value. Keeping in view, the chemical diversity of the plant, the essential oils from the fresh and shade dried leaves were analysed by GC and GC-MS. Twenty nine compounds were identified in the oil from the fresh material while forty two compounds were present in the dried sample accounting for 93.5 % and 95.7 % of the oil respectively. The main compounds from the fresh sample were trans-caryophyllene (26.7 %), alpha-pinene (10.7 %), terpinen-4-ol (8.5 %), sabinene (9.9 %), alpha-humulene (6.6 %) and beta-elemene (5.6 %). The shade dried material showed the presence of alpha-pinene (34.4 %), trans-caryophyllene (11.4 %), sabinene (11.5 %) and terpinen-4-ol (5.3 %). The percentage of alpha-pinene in shade dried material was found to increase from 10.7-34.4 % while that of trans-caryophyllene was found to decrease from 26.7-11.4 %.