Nutraceuticals from chamomile flowers: characterization and quantification

Chamomile is a native plant of Europe and West Asia and is a member of the daisy family (Asteraceae or Compositae). It has been used as an herbal medication since ancient times, but it is still popular today and probably will continue to be used in the future because it contains various phytochemicals that could provide therapeutic effects. In fact, different classes of both lipophilic and hydrophilic bioactive principles have been isolated from the dry flowers: α-bisabolol, bisabolol oxides A and B, chamazulene, farnesene, flavanoids (apigenin, luteolin and quercetin) and coumarins (herniarin and umbelliferone). These compounds show anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic and muscle-relaxants properties, but chamomile can also help in improving cardiovascular conditions, stimulate immune system and provide some protection against cancer. Thus, it is important to have at disposal reliable methods for the identification and determination of chamomile’s bioactive constituents. A TLC procedure has been carried out to separate and identify several analytes. Moreover, liquid chromatographic and electrophoretic methods have been developed for the analysis of selected compounds in chamomile extracts. In particular, two HPLC methods coupled with diode array detection have been implemented for the determination of lipophilic (such as chamazulene, farnesene and α-bisabolol) and hydrophilic (such as apigenin, quercetin and umbelliferone) constituents, respectively. Assays are currently in progress to validate the methods in terms of sensitivity, precision and accuracy.