Abstract
The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of East Indian sandalwood oil (Santalum album, Santalaceae) and α-santalol on physiological parameters as well as on mental and emotional conditions in healthy human subjects after transdermal absorption. In order to exclude any olfactory stimulation, the inhalation of the fragrances was prevented by breathing masks. Eight physiological parameters, i. e., blood oxygen saturation, blood pressure, breathing rate, eye-blink rate, pulse rate, skin conductance, skin temperature, and surface electromyogram were recorded. Subjective mental and emotional condition was assessed by means of rating scales. While α-santalol caused significant physiological changes which are interpreted in terms of a relaxing/sedative effect, sandalwood oil provoked physiological deactivation but behavioral activation. These findings are likely to represent an uncoupling of physiological and behavioral arousal processes by sandalwood oil.
Key words
Autonomic nervous system - human - sandalwood - α-santalol - subjective evaluation - transdermal administration
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Dr. Tapanee Hongratanaworakit
Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry
Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Srinakharinwirot University
Nakorn-nayok 26120
Thailand
Fax: +66-37-395096
Email: tapanee@swu.ac.th
