Rev. Virtual Quim., 2021, 13 (5), 1203-1215 ©2021 Sociedade Brasileira de Química 1203 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. Chemodiversity of Essential Oils in Piper L. (Piperaceae) Species from Marambaia Island, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brazil Quimodiversidade de Óleos Essenciais em Espécies de Piper L. (Piperaceae) da Restinga da Ilha da Marambaia, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brasil Rudá Antas Pereira, a Ygor Jessé Ramos, a,b,c George Azevedo de Queiroz, c Elsie Franklin Guimarães, d Anna Carina Antunes e Defaveri, c Davyson de Lima Moreira a,b, * This study aimed to determine the pattern of chemodiversity from the chemical composition of the leaf essential oil (EO) of ten species and two varieties of Piper (Piper amalago L.; P. amplum Kunth; P. anisum (Spreng.) Angely; P. arboreum Aubl. var. arboreum; P. arboreum var. hirtelum Yunck.; P. diospyrifolium Kunth; P. divaricatum G. Mey.; P. gaudichaudianum Kunth; P. lepturum (Kunth) C.DC. var. lepturum; P. lepturum var. angustifolium (C.DC.) Yunck.; P. mollicomum Kunth and P. vicosanum Yunck.) collected in the Marambaia Island, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). The main compounds identified in the EO were Linalool, Guaiol, 1-Butyl-3,4-methylenedioxybenzene, iso-Leptospermone, α-Eudesmol, trans-Nerolidol, Germacrene D, β-Elemene, 7-epi-α-Selinene, 1,8-Cineole, α-Eudesmol, α-Copaene, trans-γ-Bisabolene, Bicyclogermacrene and β-Bisabolol. In the chemometric analysis performed, it was possible to find correlations between the taxonomic characteristics of the genus Piper and the chemical composition of EO. In addition to registering trans-Caryophyllene as chemodiversity standard for this genus in this region. It is also the first study to compare the chemical composition of Piper arboreum Aubl. var. arboreum and Piper arboreum var. hirtelum Yunck. Keywords: Piper, Essential Oil, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, Chemodiversity a Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia, Pós-graduação em Biologia Vegetal, Maracanã, CEP 20550- 013. Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brazil. b Departamento de Produtos Naturais, Farmanguinhos, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Manguinhos, CEP 21041-250, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brazil. c Centro de Responsabilidade Socioambiental do Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro, Jardim Botânico, CEP 22460- 030, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brazil d Diretoria de Pesquisa do Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro, Jardim Botânico, CEP 22460-030, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, Brazil *E-mail: davysonmoreira@hotmail.com Recebido: 22 de Março de 2021 Aceito: 22 de Março de 2021 Publicado online: 6 de Outubro de 2021 Article https://dx.doi.org/10.21577/1984-6835.20210067 1. Introduction The Marambaia Island located in Southern of the Rio de Janeiro State is one of the few Atlantic Forest reserves in Southeastern Brazil. This region was very important for trade in the Brazilian colonial period, and due to the extensive degradation, nowadays it has restricted access and is an environmental protection area. 1,2 In this region there is a large restinga area, and the vegetation has suffered deforestation and shows different ecological pressure compared to seasonal and ombrophilous forests. So, the conservation and study of the current plant remnants are of great importance. 1-3 The genus Piper L. (Piperaceae) has a wide occurrence in Brazil. About 180 species are registered for the State of Rio de Janeiro. In the restinga vegetation of this State, there are 16 species registered as Piper. Due to the number of Piper species in restinga areas, it is permissible to propose possible indications that they may present new physiological and morphological adaptation strategies for survival in this environment, making it interesting for a chemical study. 4-12 Piper species are recognized for showing ritualistic and medicinal usages, as well as aromatic plants rich in essential oils (EOs). Some of the species are medicinal recognized and of commercial importance, such as Piper nigrum L. (Black pepper), Piper methysticum Forst (Kava-kava) and P. hispidinervium C. DC. (Long pepper), while P. amalago L. (Aperta-ruão), P. mollicomum Kunth (Jaborandi-manso) and P. umbellatum L. (Capeba) are used in folk medicine. 13-14 EOs from Piper species are recognized for their pharmacological properties, such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiparasitic, diuretic and insecticide activities. 15-18 These are mainly composed of monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, arylpropanoids and benzoic acids derivatives 16-20