Isolation and Structural Elucidation of Rosmarinic Acid by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Melissa officinalis Labiatae is an edible herb native to the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe. It is one of the oldest and still most popular medicinal plants. Lemon Balm is the common name of Melissa officinalis. This plant naturalizes easily, reproduces by underground stems and grows up to 45 cm in height. The herbal tea can be used therapeutically for soothing stomach cramps, indigestion and nausea. It is also lightly stimulating and a good tea to drink when studying. Melissa should be distilled before it flowers. The entire above ground plant is taken, the heavier stems discarded and steam-distilled to obtain the hydrosols. The major components of lemon balm are caffeic acid, the flavonoids: luteolin-7-O-glucoside, isoquercitrin, apigenin-7-O-glucoside, ahe essential oil (0.19%) from the flowers contains various aldehydes including citronellal (22-36%), citral (11-26%), β-caryophyllene (10-15%), and germacrene D (10-20%).(Mulkens & Kapetanidis, 1987) The essential oil is hypotensive, a calming sedative and anti-inflammatory. It is used for insomnia, hysteria and irritability by inhalation and will relieve a cold sore if applied externally.(Wu, Hong, Klauck, Lin, & Efferth, 2015)