Essential oil from fruits and roots of Ferulago campestris (Besser) Grecescu (Apiaceae): composition and antioxidant and anti-Candida activity

Essential oil from fruits and roots of Ferulago campestris (Apiaceae) growing in central Italy was analysed by GC-FID and GC-MS for composition and by agar diffusion and microdilution methods for antibacterial and anti-Candida activity. The antioxidant activities were also investigated by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging, beta-carotene/linoleic acid assay, scavenging of hydrogen peroxide (HRPO test), and hypochlorous acid scavenging (taurine test). High yields of essential oils (5.7-7.1%) were obtained by hydrodistillation from fruits, making these exploitable in the flavour and fragrance industry. Monoterpene hydrocarbons constituted the main fraction of both fruits (78.8-80.3%) and roots (67.2-81.4%), with myrcene (33.4-39.7%), alpha-pinene (22.7-23.0%) and gamma-terpinene (8.1-10.9%) as the major components of fruits, and alpha-pinene (58.3-75.0%) as the predominant compound in the oil from roots collected in summer. (2,3,6)-Trimethyl benzaldehyde was an aromatic volatile detected in significant percentages (8.6-9.0% in fruits, 14.8-27.9% in roots collected in summer, 65.2% in roots collected in autumn) in both oils. The antioxidant activity was related as IC50 to Trolox or BHT; <2 ml oils had an activity equivalent to 1 mg Trolox in the DPPH radical-scavenging, and about 1 ml oils could be compared with 1 mg Trolox or BHT in the beta-carotene/linoleic acid assay, HRPO and taurine tests. The essential oils from the roots were more active than those from fruits against the microorganisms tested, owing to the abundance of alpha-pinene, a monoterpene hydrocarbon with known antimicrobial potency. In particular, it showed strong inhibition on clinically isolated Candida strains, namely C. albicans (MIC values of 39-78 mu g/ml), C. tropicalis and C. glabrata (MIC values of 78 mu g/ml). Copyright (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.