Anise

Anise
Anise is the dried fruit of an annual herbaceous plant, Pimpinella anisum (L.), belonging to the Umbelliferae or Carrot family. Pimpinella anisum (L.), is indigenous to the eastern Mediterranean region, but is cultivated in many parts of the world including Spain, Syria, Turkey, India, China, Mexico and Argentina.

Anise is used to flavor soup, cakes, cookies, and rolls; in confectionary to flavor candies and syrups.

Crushed anise seeds yield a steam volatile oil amounting to 1.5 – 3.5%. The principal flavor component of the oil is anethole (80 – 90%) together with other organic compounds such as methyl chavicol, anisketone, and anisaldehyde. Anise seed and anise oil are characterized by a licorice-like flavor and odor.

In one study, scientists isolated 22 compounds in Pimpinella’s essential oil and found high levels of organic mixture called phenylpropanoids. The compounds were found to have effectively against strawberry anthracnose and strawberry soft rot and leaf blight. A few showed some effectiveness against Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite that causes malaria in humans, and Mycobacterium intracellulare, a bacterium which can cause illness in immunocompromised patients.

These results suggest that Pimpinella essential oils may be a source of potent compounds that could be used in developing powerful new pharmaceuticals and agrochemical agents.
Anise