Tea Tree Oil Essay

INTRODUCTION:

Tea tree oil, or Melaleuca oil, is an essential oil having a fresh camphoraceous odor and a color that ranges from pale yellow to nearly colorless and clear. Tea tree oil is known for its topical antiseptic and anti-fungal treatment or infection-reducing benefits. It also has antibiotic properties and helps aid against aliments such as skin infections, rashes, burns, dandruff and much more. Many of the essential oils have extremely useful properties and can be put to use in many ways e.g. terpine-4-ol, an antiseptic agent, is produced synthetically in Europe at great expense. It also occurs naturally in Australia as an essential oil of tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) and is sold as tea tree oil obtained by distillation of the plant material [1]. Tea tree oil is increasingly widely used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and toiletries [2-3], its antibacterial activities have been associated with volatile components, principally terpinen-4-ol although the diversity of these components and their occurrence and relative concentrations vary widely depending on the source of M. alternifolia [4].

Other dermatologic studies have been conducted with tea tree oil in the treatment of acne, head lice and recurrent herpes labialis, in which effects were found to be either similar or better than traditional treatment and often with fewer side effects [10-13]. A few published studies report that the successful use of tea tree oil in treating mucous membrane infections, including Trichomonas vaginalis [14] and against oral bacteria and oropharyngeal candidiasis [15-16].

Literature Survey reveals that there are no information about the spectral, thermodynamic, transport and Acoustic Properties of components of tea tree oil, so it was taken to know about the nature of components of tea tree oil with organic solvents.

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