Geranium oil, a plant-derived essential oil, exhibits neuroprotective properties as a dietary intervention in a model of Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND

Rose geranium (Pelargonium graveolens L'Hér.) is cultivated for its essential oil (geranium oil). This research attempts to evaluate the neuroprotective capacity of geranium oil (PGEO) in a rotenone-induced rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD).

RESULTS

Rotenone (1.5 mg kg-1, s.c.) elicited a progressive loss in locomotor activity. Treatment of PD rats with PGEO (100 mg kg-1, p.o.) reduced motor impairment and restored brain levels of norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin by 56.00%, 94.44%, and 55.55%, respectively. PGEO significantly reduced α-synuclein levels by 61.66%. It balanced oxidative status by increasing glutathione and decreasing malondialdehyde levels by 47.62% and 44.21%, respectively. PGEO decreased serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6 by 59.57% and 30.23%, respectively, and increased lactate dehydrogenase as well as succinate dehydrogenase activities by 38.88% and 26.66%, respectively. PGEO treatment restored rotenone-induced histopathological changes. Fifty-seven metabolites were annotated in PGEO by Global Natural Products Social molecular networking and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, with fatty acid amides identified as a new class of compounds in the genus Pelargonium.

CONCLUSION

The neuroprotective effect of geranium oil against rotenone-induced PD is mediated, at least in part, via anti-inflammatory and antioxidant mechanisms. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.