Monoterpenoids glycosides content from two Mediterranean populations of Crucianella maritima L.

In this study, the iridoidic content of two accessions of Crucianella maritima L., one from Sardinia and the second from Latium, was examined and compared. From a qualitative point of view, the iridoidic pattern of the two samples was similar, since the same compounds (asperuloside, asperulosidic acid and deacetyl asperulosidic acid) were isolated. Asperuloside was the main compound in both accessions. Asperulosidic acid was the second compound in the accession from Sardinia, while the accession from Latium exhibited a similar amount of asperulosidic acid and deacetyl asperulosidic acid. These iridoids can be considered as chemotaxonomic markers for parts of the Rubiaceae family, in particular for the Rubioideae subfamily to which C. maritima belongs.