Volume: 44 Issue: 1
Aromatherapy of Santalum album Linn. and its antiviral activity
Year: 2022, Page: 12-20, Doi: https://doi.org/10.62029/jmaps.v44i1.Das
Received: Feb. 2, 2022 Accepted: June 1, 2022 Published: Oct. 27, 2022
Santalum album Linn. also known as white sandalwood (Chandan/ srigandha), is a scented evergreen tree that belongs to the Santalaceae family. This plant is rich in essential oils extracted commonly by hydrodistillation. In phytochemical studies, alpha and beta santalols are major constituents in the heartwood. Sandalwood oil is used in aromatherapy, a holistic approach to treating mental illnesses without any risk of side effects like conventional medicines. Aromatherapy also cures insomnia and skin problems and provides relief in case of respiratory ailments too. Among numerous beneficial qualities, sandalwood oil also has antiviral properties; it is proven to prevent the multiplication of Herpes Simplex Virus, helps treat Human Papilloma virus, and indirectly contributes to combating Influenza-A virus. This article attempts to concisely apply aromatherapy and antiviral activities using the essential oil of sandalwood.
Keywords: Antiviral activity, Aromatherapy, Essential oil, Sandalwood
Ali, B., Al-Wabel, N. A., Shams, S., Ahmad, A., Khan, S. A., & Anwar, F. (2015). Essential oils used in aromatherapy: A systematic review. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine, 5, 589–598.
Anonis, D. P. (1998). Sandalwood and sandalwood compounds. Perfumer & Flavorist, 23, 19–24.
Baldovini, N., Delasalle, C., & Joulain, D. (2011). Phytochemistry of the heartwood from fragrant Santalum species: A review. Flavour and Fragrance Journal, 26, 7–26.
Benencia, F., & Courreges, M. C. (1999). Antiviral activity of sandalwood oil against herpes simplex viruses-1 and -2. Phytomedicine, 6, 119–123.
Boukhatem, M. N., Kameli, A., Ferhat, M. A., & Mekarnia, M. (2013). Rose geranium essential oil as a source of new and safe anti-inflammatory drugs. Libyan Journal of Medicine, 8, 22520.
Brand, J. E., Fox, J. E. D., Pronk, G., & Cornwell, C. (2007). Comparison of oil concentration and oil quality from Santalum spicatum, S. album plantations, 8–25 years old, with those from mature S. spicatum natural stands. Australian Forestry, 70, 235–241.
Brazier, Y. (2017). Aromatherapy: What you need to know. Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/10884
Chattopadhyay, D., & Naik, T. N. (2007). Antivirals of ethnomedicinal origin: Structure-activity relationship and scope. Mini Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry, 7, 275–301.
Chattopadhyay, D., Sarkar, M. C., Chatterjee, T., Sharma, D. R., Bag, P., Chakraborti, S., & Khan, M. T. (2009). Recent advancements for the evaluation of antiviral activities of natural products. Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, 25, 347–368.
Chouhan, S., Sharma, K., & Guleria, S. (2017). Antimicrobial activity of some essential oils—present status and future perspectives. Medicines, 4, 58.
D’Agostino, M., Tesse, N., Frippiat, J. P., Machouart, M., & Debourgogne, A. (2019). Essential oils and their natural active compounds presenting antifungal properties. Molecules, 24, 3713.
Das, P., Geetha, R. M., Das, S. K., Mishra, A., Singh, R. R. P., Subba, R. G., Arya, H. P. S., Verma, L. R., & Ray, D. P. (2004). Geographical indications of plant species in ITKs in agriculture. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
De Clercq, E. (2004). Antiviral drugs in current clinical use. Journal of Clinical Virology, 30, 115–133.
Doran, J. C., Thomson, L., Brophy, J. J., Goldsack, B., Bulai, P., Faka’osi, T., & Mokoia, T. (2005). Variation in heartwood oil composition of young sandalwood trees in the South Pacific (Santalum yasi, S. album and F1 hybrids in Fiji, and S. yasi in Tonga and Niue). Sandalwood Research Newsletter, 20, 3–7.
Erligmann, A. (2001). Sandalwood oils. International Journal of Aromatherapy, 11, 186–192.
Fox, J. E. (2000). Sandalwood: The royal tree. The Biologist (London), 47, 31–34.
Garman, E., & Laver, G. (2004). Controlling influenza by inhibiting the virus’s neuraminidase. Current Drug Targets, 5, 119–136.
Haque, M. H., & Haque, A. U. (2000). Use of sandalwood oil for the prevention and treatment of warts, skin blemishes and other viral-induced tumors. U.S. Patent No. 6,132,756.
Haque, M. H., & Haque, A. U. (2002). Use of α- and β-santalols, major constituents of sandalwood oil, in the treatment of warts, skin blemishes and other viral-induced tumors. U.S. Patent No. 6,406,706.
Hayden, F. G., & Hay, A. J. (1992). Emergence and transmission of influenza A viruses resistant to amantadine and rimantadine. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology, 176, 119–130.
Hettiarachchi, D. S. (2008). Volatile oil content determination in the Australian sandalwood industry: Towards a standardised method. Sandalwood Research Newsletter, 23, 1–4.
Hongratanaworakit, T., Heuberger, E., & Buchbauer, G. (2004). Evaluation of the effects of East Indian sandalwood oil and α-santalol on humans after transdermal absorption. Planta Medica, 70, 37.
Hongratanaworakit, T. (2011). Aroma-therapeutic effects of massage blended essential oils on humans. Natural Product Communications, 6, 1199–1204.
Howes, M. J. R., Simmonds, M. S. J., & Kite, G. C. (2004). Evaluation of sandalwood essential oils by gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy. Journal of Chromatography A, 1028, 307–312.
Ison, M. G., Gubareva, L. V., Atmar, R. L., Treanor, J., & Hayden, F. G. (2006). Recovery of drug resistant influenza virus from immunocompromised patients: A case series. Journal of Infectious Diseases, 193, 760–764.
Jain, S. H., Angadi, V. G., & Shankaranarayana, K. H. (2003). Edaphic, environmental and genetic factors associated with growth and adaptability of sandal (Santalum album L.) in provenances. Sandalwood Research Newsletter, 17, 6–7.
Jones, C. G., Keeling, C. I., Ghisalberti, E. L., Barbour, E. L., Plummer, J. A., & Bohlmann, J. (2008). Isolation of cDNAs and functional characterisation of two multiproduct terpene synthase enzymes from sandalwood (Santalum album L.). Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 477, 121–130.
Jones, C. G., Moniodis, J., Zulak, K. G., Scaffidi, A., Plummer, J. A., Ghisalberti, E. L., Barbour, E. L., & Bohlmann, J. (2011). Sandalwood fragrance biosynthesis involves sesquiterpene synthases of both the terpene synthase (TPS)-a and TPS-b subfamilies, including santalene synthases. The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 286, 17445–17454.
Joshi, S. G. (2003). Medicinal plants. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd. 157–158.
Kesarkar, P., & Khan, S. (2021). Ethnomedicinal plants used in the treatment of respiratory diseases around Western Ghats region of Maharashtra, India. Journal of Global Biosciences, 10, 8447–8457.
Kilbourne, A. D. (2006). Influenza pandemics of the 20th century. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 12, 9–14.
Kirtikar, K. R., & Basu, B. D. (1933). Indian medicinal plants (Vol. 3, 2nd ed., pp. 2184–2188). L. M. Basu, 49 Leader Road, Allahabad.
Koch, C., Reichling, J., Schneele, J., & Schnitzler, P. (2008). Inhibitory effect of essential oils against herpes simplex virus type 2. Phytomedicine, 15, 71–78.
Koroch, A. R., Juliani, H. R., & Zygadlo, J. A. (2007). Bioactivity of essential oils and their components. In R. G. Berger (Ed.), Flavours and fragrances: Chemistry, bioprocessing and sustainability (pp. 87–115). Springer.
Kyle, G. (2006). Evaluating the effectiveness of aromatherapy in reducing levels of anxiety in palliative care patients: Results of a pilot study. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 12, 148–155.
Mansour, B., & Adraa, W. (2020). Concept of aromatherapy in boosting psychological immune system against COVID-19. Medicinal Plants - International Journal of Phytomedicine and Related Industries, 12, 205. https://doi.org/10.5958/0975-6892.2020.00027.1
Misra, B. B., & Dey, S. (2013). Shikimic acid (Tamiflu precursor) production in suspension cultures of East Indian sandalwood (Santalum album) in air-lift bioreactor. Journal of Postdoctoral Research, 1, 1–9.
Ochi, T., Shibata, H., Higuti, T., Kodama, K. H., Kusumi, T., & Takaishi, Y. (2005). Anti-Helicobacter pylori compounds from Santalum album. Journal of Natural Products, 68, 819–824.
Okugawa, H., Ueda, R., Matsumoto, K., Kawanishi, K., & Kato, A. (1995). Effect of α-santalol and β-santalol from sandalwood on the central nervous system in mice. Phytomedicine, 2, 119–126.
Okugawa, H., Ueda, R., Matsumoto, K., Kawanishi, K., & Kato, K. (2000). Effects of sesquiterpenoids from “Oriental incenses” on acetic acid-induced writhing and D2 and 5-HT2A receptors in rat brain. Phytomedicine, 7, 417–422.
Patil, V., Vadnere, G. P., & Patel, N. (2011). Absence of antimicrobial activity in alcoholic extract of Santalum album Linn. Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative Results, 2, 107–109.
Paulpandi, M., Soundarapandian, K., Ramar, T., Krishnasamy, K., Palani, G., & Chandrababu, R. (2012). In vitro antiviral effect of β-santalol against influenza viral replication. Phytomedicine, 19(3–4), 231–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2011.11.006
Poralla, V., & Srivastava, S. (2020). Prominence of sandalwood (white and red) handicraft in the interiors with respect to aromatherapy. International Journal of Advance Research, Ideas and Innovations in Technology, 6, www.ijariit.com.
Prasath, C. N. H., Balasubramanian, A., & Radhakrishnan, S. (2019). Sandalwood—expensive and medicinal tree. Van Sangyan, 6, 4–9.
Sathiyawathie, S., Ganapathy, D., & Roy, A. (2016). Anxiety and aromatherapy: A review. International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biological Sciences, 7, 267–273.
Setzer, W. N. (2009). Essential oils and anxiolytic aromatherapy. Natural Product Communications, 4, 1305–1316. PMID: 19831048
Shankaranarayana, K. H. (1979). Separation of alpha- and beta-santalols by column chromatography. Indian Forester, 13, 65–66.
Singh, C. U., & Nulu, J. R. (2010). Derivatives of sandalwood oil and santalols for treating cold sores and herpes. U.S. Patent No. 7,858,126.
Soundararajan, V. (2017). Recent developments in pharmaceutical and therapeutic applications of sandalwood oil. World Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 659–680. https://doi.org/10.20959/wjpps20178-9824
Subasinghe, U., Hettiarachchi, D., & Gamage, M. (2010). Oil content analysis of sandalwood: A novel approach for core sample analysis. Sandalwood Research Newsletter, 25, 1–4. https://doi.org/10.13140/2.1.1024.8327
Trambert, R., Kowalski, M. O., Wu, B., Mehta, N., & Friedman, P. (2017). A randomized controlled trial provides evidence to support aromatherapy to minimize anxiety in women undergoing breast biopsy. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 14, 394–402. https://doi.org/10.1111/wvn.12229. PMID: 28395396
Verghese, J., Sunny, T. P., & Balakrishnan, K. V. (1990). Alpha-santalol and beta-santalol, a new quality determination of East Indian sandalwood oil. Flavour and Fragrance Journal, 5, 223–226.
Wagner, W., Herbst, D., & Sohmer, S. (1999). Manual of flowering plants of Hawai‘i (Rev. ed., Vols. 1–2, p. 1919). Bishop Museum Press.
Xu, H. X., Zeng, F. Q., Wan, M., & Sim, K. Y. (1996). Anti-HIV triterpene acids from Geum japonicum. Journal of Natural Products, 59, 643–645.
© CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Lucknow-226015
Das, S. S., & Khan, S. Y. (2022). Aromatherapy of Santalum album Linn. and its antiviral activity. Journal of Medicinal and Aromatic Plant Sciences, 44(1), 12–20.
