Elucidation of the chemical structure of a novel antioxidant, rosmaridiphenol, isolated from rosemary

A novel antioxidant compound has been isolated and identified from the leaves of theRosmarinus officinalis L. The compound, named rosmaridiphenol, is a diphenolic diterpene. When tested in lard, the antioxidant activity of this compound was superior to BHA. Structural elucidation of rosmaridiphenol was accomplished by infrared spectroscopy (IR), mass spectroscopy (MS),1H-NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) and13C-NMR spectroscopy.