Chemical Composition of Peganum harmala Smoke and Volatile Oil

Peganum harmala L. smoke has been used traditionally in Middle Eastern and Asian countries as a disinfectant and air purifier. Here, the smoke was collected by a simple, reproducible method, and its chemical constituents of the smoke and volatile oil were analyzed. The major components of P. harmala smoke were α-pinene (60.4 %), limonene (6.4 %) and styrene (4.2 %) and those of the volatile oil were α-pinene (72.6 %), trans-verbenole (3.9 %) and sabinene (2.6 %). Styrene and some other components with potential antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activities were found in the smoke but not found in the volatile oil.