Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oils from Xylopia aromatica (Annonaceae) flowers and leaves

Abstract

The essential oils (EO) from flowers and leaves were obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The main compounds found in the flower oil were pentadecan-2-one (16.38%), bicyclogermacrene (9.74%) 7-epi-α-eudesmol (7.76%), khusinol (7.23%), n-tricosane (6.17%), heptadecan-2-one (5.83%), geranyl-α-terpinene (4.46%) and cedr-8(15)-en-9α-ol (4.40%). The leaf oil contained predominantly spathulenol (27.11%), khusinol (13.04%), bicyclogermacrene (8.52%), globulol (6.47%), cis-guaia-3,9-dien-11-ol (5.98%), 2-epi-α-cedren-3-one (4.69%) and elemicin (4.32%). The antimicrobial activity of the EO was tested against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains and fungi. The flower and leaf oils exhibited the lowest minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) against Streptococcus pyogenes ATCC 12345 (200 and 100 µg mL-1 respectively). As for antifungal potential, the EO from leaves showed moderate activity (500 µg mL-1) against Candida albicans. This study offers the first report about the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the EO from X. aromatica flowers and contributes to the body of knowledge about this species.