SPECTROSCOPIC CHARACTERIZATION AND CHEMOTAXONOMY OF VOLATILE COMPOUNDS FROM LOWLAND PAPUAN GOGAUKE (CENTELLA ASIATICA L. URBAN) EXTRACT AS AN ECO-FRIENDLY BIO-EXCELLENT PRODUCT

Abstract

Gogauke (Centella asiatica L. Urban), widely known as pegagan, is a local Papuan herbal commodity with strategic potential for development into eco-friendly, "Bio-Excellent" labeled products. The biochemical characteristics of this plant are heavily influenced by its ecoregion, where lowland environments exert specific abiotic stresses that induce the synthesis of a unique volatilome. This study was designed to comprehensively map the volatile profile of lowland Gogauke extract (grown at an altitude of 100–300 m a.s.l.) collected from the riparian zone of Lake Sentani, Papua, using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) equipped with a high-resolution single quadrupole detector. Physical and microbiological evaluations demonstrated that this volatile extract maintains a stable moisture content of 9.8% with a high yield of 44.14%, while strictly complying with the microbial contamination safety limits established by BPOM (Indonesian National Agency of Drug and Food Control). Gas chromatographic separation using a semipolar TRACE TG SQC capillary column (30 m × 0.25 mm × 0.25 µm) successfully resolved 82 volatile peaks within a total separation time of 65 minutes. Mass spectra identification revealed a dominance of lupane-type pentacyclic triterpenoids, with Lupeol emerging as the primary volatile constituent, reaching a relative peak area of 10.11%. The extract was also found to be rich in functional phenolic compounds, characterized by a high accumulation of 1,2,3-Benzenetriol (8.57%) and eight fragmented peaks of the functional ester Methyl gallate (cumulative area of 8.77%). Furthermore, the analysis identified the functional lipid Squalene (4.13%), the saturated fatty acid n-Hexadecanoic acid (8.74%), dl-alpha-Tocopherol (7.10%), and phytosterols (beta-Sitosterol, Stigmasterol, and Campesterol). The combination of these compounds forms a synergistic phytocomplex system that imparts high thermal stability to the oil formulation, while simultaneously providing antioxidant, photoprotective (SPF), and dermal anti-inflammatory activities