Recent studies on pinene and its biological and pharmacological activities



Dear Editor,

Pinene (C₁₀H₁₆) is a well-known group of monoterpenes and the main component of turpentine, which is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin harvested from coniferous trees, particularly those of the genus Pinus (Mercier et al., 2009[31]; Al-Tel et al., 2020[1]). Pinene can be divided into two structural isomers: α-pinene (α-pinene) and beta-pinene (β-pinene). α- and β-pinene are mainly produced by pine trees and many other conifers, as well as a wide range of herbs such as rosemary, parsley, basil, and even orange peel (Erman and Kane, 2008[9]; Vespermann et al., 2017[45]).

α-pinene, the most abundant monoterpene in the atmosphere, accounts for more than 50 % of global monoterpene emissions and is a major component of phytoncides (Bagchi et al., 2020[2]; Li et al., 2009[27]). Phytoncides are antimicrobial allelochemical volatile organic compounds that are related to forest healing and activation of recreational forests. Trees are considered one of the major emitters of phytoncides (Li, 2010[26]).

A wide range of pharmacological activities of α- and β-pinene have been reported, such as anticoagulant, anti-inflammatory, anti-leishmania, antimalarial, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumor, analgesic, and antibiotic resistance modulation effects (Türkez and Aydın, 2016[42]; Salehi et al., 2019[40]). These monoterpenes exhibit various biological activities and have a wide range of applications, including development of antimicrobial and antiviral agents, flavors, fragrances, and fungicidal agents (Rivas da Silva et al., 2012[38]; Yang et al., 2013[49]). Herein, we summarize the recent published findings on the biological and pharmacological activities of pinene (Table 1(Tab. 1); References in Table 1: Bouzenna et al., 2017[3]; Cardoso et al., 2020[4]; Chen et al., 2015[5]; de Macêdo et al., 2018[6]; do Amaral et al., 2020[7]; Ensaka and Sakamoto, 2020[8]; Felipe et al., 2019[10]; Govindarajan et al., 2016[11]; Hou et al., 2019[12]; İnce et al., 2018[13]; Jensen et al., 2020[14]; Jo et al., 2021[15]; Karthikeyan et al., 2018[17], 2019[16]; Kasuya et al., 2015[18]; Khoshnazar et al., 2019[19], 2020[20]; Kim et al., 2015[21]; Kovač et al., 2015[22]; Kusuhara et al., 2019[23]; Langsi et al., 2020[24]; Lee et al., 2017[25]; Li et al., 2016[28]; Memariani et al., 2017[29]; Meng et al., 2020[30]; Min et al., 2020[32]; Moreira et al., 2016[33]; Nóbrega et al., 2020[34]; Pajaro-Castro et al., 2017[35]; Pinheiro et al., 2015[36]; Porres-Martínez et al., 2016[37]; Rodrigues et al., 2015[39]; Šimunović et al., 2020[41]; Ueno et al., 2019[44], 2020[43]; Wang et al., 2019[46]; Xu et al., 2018[47]; Yang et al., 2016[48]; Zamyad et al., 2019[50]; Zhang et al., 2015[52], 202[51]0; Zhao et al., 2018[53]).

Table 1. Recent studies on the biological and pharmacological activities of pinene.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. 2021R1A2C201017811) and this study was carried out with the support of ‘R&D Program for Forest Science Technology (Project No. 2021379B10-2123-BD02)’ provided by Korea Forest Service (Korea Forestry Promotion Institute).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.