"Salvia lavandulifolia (Spanish sage) is a small woody herbaceous perennial native to Spain and southern France, growing in rocky soil in Maquis shrubland, often found growing with Rosemary, Lavandula lanata, and Genista cinerea.

Salvia lavandulifolia grows one foot tall and wide, with a reclining habit and narrow, lanceolate, whitish-gray evergreen leaves that are less than 2 inches long. The leaves grow opposite each other on the stem and appear to grow in bunches. When the leaves are rubbed, oils give off a fragrance similar to rosemary. These oils are used for scenting soaps. The 1 inch long pale lavender flowers grow on short inflorescences, blooming for about one month in late spring and early summer. The flowering stems have very few flowers on widely spaced whorls. Some varieties have a dark calyx.

The essential oil of S. lavandulifolia has been found to have a selective acetylcholinesterase-inhibiting effect, (in as far as the regions of the brain in which acetylcholinesterase activity has been demonstrated, such areas are: statium and hippocampus) with an IC50 value of 0.03μg/mL. It is believed that the chief reason for this activity are the monoterpenes 1,8-cineole and α-pinene which have IC50 values of 0.67 and 0.63 mM respectively."

Taken from wikipedia's page at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S...

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