Chemical Composition and Antimicrobial Activity of the Essential Oil of Verbascum thapsus L.

The composition of the essential oil obtained from the dried flowering aerial parts of Verbascum thapsus L. was analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Ninety-two components were identified in the essential oil of V. thapsus. The major components of the essential oil were 6,10,14-trimethyl-2-pentadecanone (14.3 %) and (E)-phytol (9.3 %). The antimicrobial activity of V. thapsus oil was studied using the disk diffusion method and determination of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values. The V. thapsus oil exhibited concentration-dependent antimicrobial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Aspergilus niger. The essential oil did not show any antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli and Candida albicans.