Variation in the essential oil composition of wild Artemisia haussknechtii Boiss. populations collected from Iran

Artemisia haussknechtii is a valuable medicinal plant native to Iran, belonging to the Artemisia genus. This study aims to evaluate the essential compounds of 17 populations of A. haussknechtii collected from the central and western regions of Iran between 2021 and 2022. The content and composition of the essential oil (EO) of these populations, the climatic and edaphic characteristics of the habitats were evaluated in this study. The results showed that the essential oil content (EOC) of the populations ranged from 0.21–0.83%. The essential oils of the populations contained various compounds, including 1/8-cineole (9.32–33.96%), borneol (6.11–22.19%), camphor (2.03–28.06%), valerianol (1.89–20.53%), lavandulyl acetate (1.04–11.43%), caryophyllene oxide (0–8.23%), cis-chrysanthenyl acetate (0–10.07%), spathulenol (0–7.22%), terpinen-4-ol acetate (0–7.76%), linalool (0–15.87%), α-terpineol (0–8.18%), and limonene (0–9.03%). In general, the EO of the populations contained monoterpene hydrocarbons (3.79–18.06%), oxygenated monoterpenes (55.13–77.93%), oxygenated sesquiterpenes (2.83–31.85%), and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (0.49–6.89%). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) revealed that the populations of A. haussknechtii were classified into distinct groups according to their essential oil compositions. This suggests that both environmental and genetic factors play a significant role in shaping the phytochemical makeup of these populations. In general, further research can help identify different chemotypes of this species with medicinal and food potential.