Document heading
Clove (Syzygium aromaticum): a precious spice

https://doi.org/10.1016/S2221-1691(14)60215-XGet rights and content
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ABSTRACT

Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) is one of the most valuable spices that has been used for centuries as food preservative and for many medicinal purposes. Clove is native of Indonesia but nowadays is cultured in several parts of the world including Brazil in the state of Bahia. This plant represents one of the richest source of phenolic compounds such as eugenol, eugenol acetate and gallic acid and posses great potential for pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food and agricultural applications. This review includes the main studies reporting the biological activities of clove and eugenol. The antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of clove is higher than many fruits, vegetables and other spices and should deserve special attention. A new application of clove as larvicidal agent is an interesting strategy to combat dengue which is a serious health problem in Brazil and other tropical countries. Pharmacokinetics and toxicological studies were also mentioned. The different studies reviewed in this work confirm the traditional use of clove as food preservative and medicinal plant standing out the importance of this plant for different applications.

KEYWORDS

Spice
Clove
Aromatic plant
Volatile
Antioxidant
Dengue fever
Larvicidal

Cited by (0)

Foundation Project: Supported by the São Paulo Research Foundation-FAPESP-Brazil (Grant No. 2012/09890-6).

Peer reviewer

Dr. Marcos José Salvador, Associated Professor, Pharmacy Cource, Department of Plant Biology, Institute of Biology, State University of Campinas (UNICAMP).

Tel: 055-19-35216167

E-mail: [email protected]

Comments

In the review, the authors demonstrated the main studies reporting the biological activities of clove (S. aromaticum) and eugenol. Based on the information presented, it could be concluded that clove represents a very interesting plant with an enormous potential as food preservative and as a rich source of antioxidant compounds.

Details on Page 94

Available online 28 Feb 2014