Abstract

Canelo (Drimys winteri) is a Chilean native tree with medicinal properties and sacred to mapuche people. This species contains chemical compounds with biological activity such as: essential oils, terpenes and flavonoids, which were quantified in leaves of five D. winteri and one D. andina populations by hydrodistillation (essential oils), hexane Soxhlet extraction (terpenes), and spectrophotometry (flavonoids). Mean concentrations of 0.5 mL 100 g-1 for essential oils, 7.1 % for terpenes and 1.8 % for flavonoids in leaves (dry mass) were determined. Despite the great variation found, significant differences among populations were detected in concentrations of all groups of chemical compounds studied. Populations from the central region of Chile presented the highest values of essential oils (0.68 mL 100 g-1 in Huerta de Maule population), terpenes, and flavonoids (9.47 and 2.37 %, respectively, both in the Pangal population). The southernmost population, located in Chiloé Island, showed the lowest values for the three groups of compounds: 0.22 mL 100 g-1 for essential oils, 3.36 % for terpenes and 1.21 % for flavonoids. D. winteri and D. andina populations from the IX region, geographically close to each other, had different concentrations of essential oils and flavonoids. It is concluded that different Drimys populations actually contain different quantities of essential oils, terpenes, and flavonoids.