Rosa damascena essential oils: a brief review about chemical composition and biological properties

Damask rose is one of the most important aromatic plants over the world, although mostly cultivated in Bulgaria, Turkey, and Iran. Damask rose is used as an ornamental plant in gardens and parks, but it is mainly applied for extracting essential oils (EOs) from petals and buds. Hydrolates, concretes and absolutes can also be obtained from Damask roses. These rose-based products can be used in foodstuffs, perfumery and cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries. A brief review upon the chemical composition including monoterpenes, phenylpropanoids, long-chain hydrocarbons, and metabolites resulting from carotenoids’ degradation of Damask rose EOs was made. The factors like genotype, edapho-climatic, agronomical, method of extraction, and storage that determine the chemical variability of these EOs as well as the strategies for enhancing the EO yield and its quality including selection of the best variety, agronomic and micropropagation aspects, procedures for cutting roses, their storage and extraction processes were also studied. The biological properties of Damask rose EOs involving antimicrobial, antioxidant, relaxant, anti-inflammatory, insecticidal, among other properties were also reviewed. It is expected with this review that new approaches might be started in order to achieve final Damask rose oils of high quality, from diverse origins, under a sustainable way. The production of essential oils from a specific genotype of damask rose by Bulgarian and Turkish people with well-defined physico-chemical parameters must be preserved; nevertheless, the other genotypes that produce essential oils with different composition must also be kept. New applications can be found for the EOs from these genotypes.