Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of Senecio nutans essential oil

The essential oils from the aerial parts of two samples of a population of Senecio nutans Sch.-Bip. (Asteraceae), collected in different seasons of the year in Luara region, Peru, were obtained by hydrodistillation and characterized by GC and GC-MS analyses. In both oils, monoterpene hydrocarbons predominated with (x-phellandrene and p-cymene as main constituents. The oils were tested for their antibacterial activity on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, re-suiting in a weak activity against Staphylococcus epidermidis and Escherichia coli.