نگار ولی زاده

The use of medicinal plants and their products has been expanded significantly in various countries. Sage, scientifically known as Salvia officinalis, is a valuable medicinal plant belonging to the mint family. Sage leaves contain various types of flavonoids and phenolic compounds and possess important medicinal properties such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Additionally, sage leaves and flowering tops are used in food processing and perfumery. Some compounds present in sage essential oil, such as 1,8-cineole, borneol, camphor, and thujone, exhibit antimicrobial, antioxidant, memory-enhancing, anti-Alzheimer's, and anticancer properties. The application of biofertilizers not only plays a crucial role in increasing the yield of medicinal plants but also affects the quality of active compounds. One of the strategies in sustainable agricultural systems to enhance soil fertility is the minimal use of on-farm inputs, including biofertilizers, and their combined application with organic and chemical fertilizers. Furthermore, nutrient management is a vital factor in successful cultivation.

A factorial experiment based on a randomized complete block design with three replications was conducted in the 2021-2022 growing season at the Research Farm of the Forest and Rangelands Research Institute of Iran to evaluate the effects of chemical and biological fertilizers on the percentage and composition of sage essential oil. Treatments included a control (no fertilizer), chemical fertilizers (150 kg/ha phosphorus from triple superphosphate and 300 kg/ha nitrogen from urea), and inoculation with mycorrhizal fungi (Funneliformis mosseae and Rhizophagus irregularis) and phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 187).

Results showed that the application of chemical fertilizers significantly affected the yield and percentage of essential oil compounds including alpha-pinene, camphene, 1,8-cineole, alpha-thujone, and beta-thujone, as well as the total of hydrocarbon monoterpenes, oxygenated monoterpenes, and oxygenated sesquiterpenes. The yield of compounds such as alpha-pinene, 1,8-cineole, alpha-thujone, beta-thujone, and camphor was also significantly affected. The highest percentage of alpha-thujene (% 0.25) were obtained in the treatment with both urea and phosphate fertilizers. The highest percentage of linalool and camphor yield was obtained in the treatment with biofertilizers. The highest essential oil yield with averages of 97.57, 97.07, and 89.27 kg/ha belonged to the treatments N300P0 * Funneliformis mosseae + Rhizophagus irregularis+ Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 187, Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 187 * N0P150, and Funneliformis mosseae + Rhizophagus irregularis + Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 187* N0P150, respectively."

The results of this study indicated that sage, due to its abundant aerial biomass production, requires adequate fertilization to achieve high yields. However, the essential oil percentage of this plant was not affected by environmental factors such as fertilization and seemed to be more controlled by genetic factors. This finding can significantly contribute to the selection and introduction of cultivars with high essential oil percentages in the future. Furthermore, by combining chemical and biological fertilizers, it is possible to effectively influence the percentage and quantity of major essential oil compounds in sage and achieve the production of higher quality plants with a higher percentage of specific compounds.

In order to increase the quantitative and qualitative yield of Satureja spicigera essential oil with proper plant nutrition, this study was carried out in East Azerbaijan.

This research was carried out as a randomized complete block design with eight fertilizer treatments (no fertilizer, N50, P25, K25 (kg/ha), Cow Manure (30, 60 ton/ha), Cow Manure (30, 60 ton/ha) +(kg/ha) N50, P25, K25 , Vermi-compost (5 ton/ha), Vermi-compost (5 ton/ha) +(kg/ha) N50, P25, K25) and three replications in four years (2017-2020). During the cropping season, plant height, flowering date, canopy area and green shoot yield were measured. Essential oil was extracted by distillation with distilled water and analysis of essential oil was done by gas chromatograph (GC/MS).

There was a significant difference between fertilizer treatments in terms of all traits. The main components of essential oil were thymol, parasimen and gamaterpinen, respectively. The highest yield of flowering branches at 3687 kg/ha and yield of essential oil at 54.65 kg/ha and the highest quality of essential oil (total phenolic compounds of thymol and carvacrol) at 62.59% by applying Vermi-compost5ton/ha+N50P25K25kg/ha were obtained.

Combined consumption of fertilizer treatments, especially animal manure with chemical fertilizers, in addition to increasing the yield, causes the crop to ripen early and not face the cold of early autumn. As the plant ages, the yield of the essential oil increases, but the yield is later and the quality of the essential oil decreases.

Savory (Satureja spp.) has a special position among medicinal plants due to its valuable compounds, such as thymol and carvacrol. Savory is one of the genera of the Lamiaceae family, and this genus has 16 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in Iran. Due to the high amount of essential oil, Satureja species are highly economically and medically important in the food, cosmetic, health, and pharmaceutical industries. This research aimed to increase the quantitative and qualitative yield of Satureja sahendica Bornm. essential oil with appropriate plant nutrition. This research was carried out under irrigation conditions in the form of a randomized complete block design with eight fertilizer treatments (no fertilizer, N50, P25, K25(kg.ha-1), Cow Manure(30, 60 ton.ha-1), Cow Manure(30, 60 ton.ha-1)+ N50, P25, K25(kg.ha-1), Vermi-compost(5 ton.ha-1), Vermi-compost(5 ton.ha-1)+ N50, P25, K25(kg.ha-1)) in three replications over four years (2017-2020) in East Azarbaijan province. Cultivation was indirect and through grafting. Seedlings were prepared in greenhouse conditions by growing seeds in seedling trays with a mixture of peat moss, cocopeat, and perlite in a ratio 4:2:1. The treatments were applied only once, simultaneously with the plot preparation and before the planting stage. This was done by hand spraying and mixing with the soil. The plot dimensions were 4 x 3 meters, the distance between the planting lines was 50 cm, and the distance between the plants on the line was set to 30 cm. The irrigation method was drip irrigation twice a week in the early stages of growth and once a week after establishment. Weed weeding was also done during the growing season. Plant height, flowering date, crown area, and green shoot yield were measured during the cropping season. Essential oil was extracted by distillation with distilled water, and essential oil was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Based on the results, all traits showed a significant difference between different fertilizer treatments. The highest yield of flowering branches was 1974 kg.ha-1 (6% increase compared to the control) and the yield of essential oil was 22.25 kg.ha-1 (9% increase compared to the control), and the highest quality of essential oil (sum of phenolic compounds thymol and carvacrol) is 61.89% (18% increase in comparison to the control) with treatment of Cow Manure(60 ton.ha-1)+ N50, P25, K25(kg.ha-1) were obtained. To be economical, cow manure (60 tons per hectare) can also be used alone. With regards to 50% flowering, the latest product was a control treatment (without fertilizer) with 160.25 days, while the earliest product was Cow Manure (60 tons.ha-1) +N50, P25, K25 (kg.ha-1) with 155.33 days. The main components of the essential oil were Thymol, p-cymene, and γ-terpinene, respectively. The results of the average percentage of phenolic compounds thymol and carvacrol as essential oil quality in each fertilizer treatment and each year showed that the average quality of essential oil in the first year was 53.13%, in the second and third years it was 63.98 and 63.54, respectively. The percentage decreased to 47.93% in the fourth year. The use of fertilizer treatments, especially animal manures, along with chemical fertilizers, in addition to increasing yield, also causes early ripening. Early harvesting of the first layer allows the second layer to use the growing season optimistically and avoid autumn cold. As the plant age increases, the yield of essential oil increases, but the product is later, and the quality also decreases. Accordingly, Cow Manure(60 ton.ha-1)+ N50, P25, K25(kg.ha-1) should be applied to S. sahendica until the fourth year to produce adequate yields.

Damask rose is one of the most valuable and famous medicinal plants worldwide. Its essential oil, rose water, and dried flower buds are exported. Essential oil can be used in the perfumery, cosmetic, and therapeutic industries and is widely used in depression treatment and traditional medicine. In the northwest of the country, in the provinces of East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, and Hamedan, the damask rose is known as Qizil Gul. It has a special place in the lives of the region's people. 10% of the cultivated area of this product in the country is allocated to East Azerbaijan. More than 60% of it is produced in Osko City. Due to the high added value and economic profitability of the rose, it is recommended to develop the cultivation of native varieties of rose in East Azerbaijan province. Also, investing in processing industries leads to new job creation. In addition, rose cultivation with native varieties protects and controls floods. It also prevents soil erosion and preserves and strengthens medicinal and rangeland biodiversity.

Nepeta crassifolia Boiss. & Buhse, from Lamiaceae family, is an aromatic species with medicinal properties which is endemic to Iran. The seeds and aerial parts of this plant were collected from six different regions of East Azerbaijan province. After drying, the plant aerial parts essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation and their compounds were identified by GC and GC/MS. The collected seeds, after producing greenhouse seedlings, were planted in the field in a randomized complete block design with three replications. In the second year after planting, the flowering shoots were harvested, dried, and distilled. The results showed that there was significant differences among essential oil percentage of natural habitat samples which the highest amount belonged to "Marand" region, but the farm essential oil samples did not differ with each other significantly. The compounds nepetalactone I (4aα, 7α, 7aα) and II (4aα, 7α, 7aβ), globulol, germacrene B, caryophyllene oxide, and 1,8-cineole were identified as the main essential oil compounds of this species. The highest amount of nepetalactone I or II under the natural habitat (69% and 21.7%, respectively) and field (27.3% and 51.5%, respectively) conditions belonged to "Misho" region in "Marand". "Sarab" region also had the highest amount of nepetalactone II under the natural habitat and farm conditions compared to the other samples. The highest amount of 1,8-cineole (21.8%) in the oil was also obtained from the natural habitat of "Kharil" region.

Silybum marianum L., from fam. asteraceae, is a very important medicinal plant in the pharmaceutical industry due to its active ingredient silymarin. Silymarin is very effective in treating the liver diseases, hepatitis, and cardiovascular disorders. Since the potential and production speed of this medicinal compound is low in habitats under natural conditions, the use of genetic engineering and production of transgenic plants using the various techniques such as tissue culture has been considered in this plant. The first step in this direction is to obtain an in vitro regeneration protocol. In this study, the leaf explants obtained from the Hungarian cultivar of S. marianum were evaluated for the direct regeneration affected by different combinations of hormones. Six weeks after the culture, the highest shooting (57%) was observed in the ½ MS medium containing 0.4 mg l-1 zeatin, 0.2 mg l-1 BAP, and 0.2 mg l-1 NAA. The shoots were then transferred to the root culture medium with the different hormonal treatments. The results showed that the best treatment to obtain the long and high roots was the ½ MS medium containing 0.25 mg l-1 NAA and 2 g l-1 activated charcoal. The seedlings obtained from the direct regeneration grew well after transplanting into the soil.

Iran is one of the richest sources of medicinal plants in the world due to its high climatic diversity. Cumin is one of the most important and economical medicinal plants of the Umbelliferae family, which has a high distribution in different parts of the country and is one of the most important export plants of Iran. This study was conducted to investigate the quantitative and qualitative diversity of cumin essential oil in Khorasan Razavi province in 2018-2019. For this purpose, seeds were collected from farms in 6 different regions of the province at the harvest time. Seeds were extracted by water distillation for 2 hours. Gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC / MS) devices were used to identify the essential oil compounds and determine their percentage. Nine compounds in the essential oils of Gonabad (N1), Neishabour (N2), Taybad (N3) and Khoshab (N4), 15 compounds in the essential oils of plants in Fariman region (N5) and finally 13 compounds in the essential oils of Dargaz region (N6) were identified. In total, 9 compounds; gamma-terpinene-7-al, cuminaldehyde, terpinene-4-ol, gamma-terpinene, α-phellandrene, p-cymene, sabinene, β-Pinene, α-Pinene were common in cumin essential oil extracted from 6 regions of Khorasan Razavi province. The two compounds cis-dihydrocarvone and (E) -Caryophyllene were identified exclusively in region (N5) with of 0.45% and 0.19%, respectively. α-thujene, α-terpinene, limonene and 1,8-cineol were obtained only from essential oils of (N5) and (N6).