Oil of celery

Selinene is a bicyclic sesquiterpene occurring in essential oil of celery. Its presence was first indicated by Ciamician and Silber who announced the isolation of a sesquiterpene boiling at 262° to 269°, but no characteristic derivatives were prepared. Schimmel Co. examined this sesquiterpene to which they assigned the name selinene. They prepared a solid dihydrochloride melting at 72° to 74° and ha-ving a specific rotation -h 18°. The pure sesquiterpene, regenerated from the dihydrochloride by means of sodium ethylate had the following characters —... 

Sedanolide, Cj HjgO, is the lactone of sedanolic acid. Both bodies occur in the essential oil of celery. 

The anhydride of sedanonic acid, Cj HjgOj, is not a lactone, but an anhydride resulting from the elimination of a molecule of water from a monobasic ketonic acid. Sedanonic anhydride occurs in oil of celery. The acid, which melts at 113°, has the following constitution —... 

The effect of commercial essential oils of celery, sage, dill, fennel, frankincense and nutmeg on rat skeletal muscles involved a contracture and inhibition of the twitch response to nerve stimulation, at final bath concentrations of 2 x 10-5 and 2 x 10"4 g/ml (Lis-Balchin and Hart, 1997). 

Celery contains 1.5—3.0% volatile oil, primarily containing about 60—70% d-limonene and 10—20% /i-selinene. The characteristic celery odour is thought to be due to oxygenated compounds present in the oil (sedanolide and sedanonic acid anhydride). Essential oil of celery seed is available however, the most common extractive form is the oleoresin, due to its fuller flavour. This product contains 12—16% volatile oil. 

Bubarova, M. (1 973) Studies on the leaf essential oils of celery, parsley and their hybrids from the taxonomic aspect. Gradinarska i Lozarska Nauka 1 0(1), 23-32. 

Pino, J.A., Rosado, A. and Fuentes, V. (1997) Leaf oil of celery (Apium graveolens L.) from Cuba. Journal of Essential Oil Research 9(6), 719-720. 

Oil of Celery. Volatile oil from celery seed, Apium graveolens L., Umbeltiferae. Constit. d-Limonene, phenols, sedanolide, sedanoic acid. 

Some common terpenes include geraniol, found in geraniums limonene, oil of orange a-pinene, or oil of turpentine a-farnesene, oil of cintronella zingiberene, oil of ginger farnesol, found in lily of the valley P-selinene, oil of celery and caryophyllene, oil of cloves. Isoprene is also produced in animal bodies and is said to be the most common hydrocarbon present in the human body. By one estimate, a 70-kilogram (150-pound) person produces about 17 milligrams of... 

The essential oil of celery, for example, contains 3-butyl-phthalide (63), 3-butyl-hexahydro-phthalide (64) as well as sedanolide (65) (705). The latter two lactones (64) and (65) have the characteristic odor and flavor of celery (705). Reports on the occurrence and importance of this class of aroma compounds are to be found in specialized review articles (795, 354). 

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