Chemical composition, antioxidative and antimicrobial activity of essential oil Ocimum sanctum L.

Abstract

Ocimum sanctum L. (Lamiaceae) sin. Ocimum tenuiflorum L. or Tulsi basil is a plant originating from tropical and subtropical areas of India. It is used in both the traditional and official medicine in India. Tulsi is a type of basil that is insufficiently explored and studied in Europe. The goal of this paper is to determine the chemical composition, antioxidative, and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil Ocimum sanctum L. grown in Serbia. The quantity of essential oil in 100 g of herb (v/w) is 0.68%, with 41 components identified in the tested essential oil. The most represented chemical group are sesquiturpene hydrocarbonates with 80.47%. Other groups were much less represented. Sesquiturpene hydrocarbonate β-cariophyllene is a predominant component in the essential oil with 63.80%. The quantity of tested essential oil needed to achieve 50% of inhibition of DPPH radicals is 0.35 μg/ml, and it has high potential to neutralize free radicals. The essential oil exhibited antibacterial activity to all tested strains of bacteria, both Gram-positive and Gram-negative. It affected all strains in an inhibitory way in the interval 0.34-41.50 μl/ml, and in a bactericide way within the range 22.50-124.5 μl/ml. The most sensitive strains of bacteria are Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli, while Listeria monocytogenes and Enterococus faecalis showed greatest resistance. The essential oil exhibited antifugal activity on all tested fungi. It affected all tested fungi in an inhibitory way in the interval 4.42-8.83 μl/ml, and in a microbicide way within the range 10.00-50.00 μl/ml. The most sensitive fungi are: Aspergillus ochraceus, Penicillium ochrochloron and Penicilium funiculosum, while the most resistent one is Aspergillus niger. The tested basil essential oil Ocimum sanctum demonstrated significant antioxidative and antimicrobial effect and may be used as a raw material in food, pharmaceutical and chemical industries

Effect of jasmonic acid elicitation on the yield, chemical composition, and antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of essential oil of lettuce leaf basil ( Ocimum basilicum L.)

“…Regarding their biological activities, the composition of the oils is of great importance. As suggested by Beatović et al (2015), the antioxidant potential of the oils was correlated with the major proportion of volatile compounds and with compounds possessing a phenolic ring with an OH group (for example eugenol). In a study performed by Politeo, Jukic, and Milos (2007), among the compounds present in the essential oil from basil, eugenol was considered the main contributor of the antioxidant capacity.…”

“…The essential oil content in herbal plants definitely depends on the plant species but also on the cultivar as well as environmental conditions and agronomic techniques (Arraiza, Andrés, Arrabal, & López, 2009;Hussain et al, 2008). The yields of aroma chemicals from basil presented in the literature ranged from 0.37% for basil grown in Serbia and Montenegro (Božin, Mimica-Dukic, Simin, & Anackov, 2006) to even 1.9% in the Purple Opal cultivar (Beatović et al, 2015). In our study, the essential oil yields of the control and JA1-, JA2-, and JA3-elicited lettuce leaf basil were 0.57 ± 0.01%, 0.65 ± 0.005%, 0.62 ± 0.01%, and 0.78 ± 0.005%, respectively (Table 1).…”

“…According to the data available in the literature (Beatović et al, 2015;Lee, Umano, Shibamoto, & Lee, 2005), the major constituents of basil essential oils were linalool, methyl chavicol, eugenol, methyl eugenol and cadinol, neral, 1,8-cineole, geranial, but the percentage of these individual components varies quite significantly in studies reported by various researchers. The results obtained by Beatović et al (2015) indicated that linalool was the predominant compound in the essential oil from basil cultivars growing in Serbia. In contrast, the major volatiles detected in basil herb by Lee et al (2005) were linalool, estragole, methyl cinnamate, eugenol, and 1,8-cineole.…”

“…The antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of basil essential oils were previously reported (Beatović et al, 2015;Hussain et al, 2008;Lee et al, 2005). Regarding their biological activities, the composition of the oils is of great importance.…”

Chemical composition, antioxidant and antibacterial properties of Bene (Pistacia atlantica subsp. mutica) hull essential oil

“…EO was dried over anhydrous sodium sulphate and stored at 4°C in dark until analysis. EO was diluted in n-hexane for gas chromatography and mass spectrometry analyses (Beatovic et al 2015).…”