Effect of Maturation on the Composition and Biological Activity of the Essential Oil of a Commercially Important Satureja Species from Turkey: Satureja cuneifolia Ten. (Lamiaceae)

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry 2008-03, Vol.56 (6), p.2260-2265
• Main Authors: Kosar, M, Demirci, B, Baser, K.H.C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: aerial parts; animal pathogenic bacteria; animal pathogenic fungi; Anti-Infective Agents - pharmacology; antibiotic resistance; antimicrobial activity; antimicrobial properties; antioxidant activity; Aroma and flavouring agent industries; Bacteria - drug effects; bioactive properties; Biological and medical sciences; Candida - drug effects; Candida albicans; Candida tropicalis; carvacrol; chemical composition; chemical constituents of plants; Chromatography, Gas; essential oil composition; essential oil crops; essential oils; Food Chemistry/Biochemistry; Food industries; Food microbiology; free radical scavengers; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; gas chromatography; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Lamiaceae; lipid peroxidation; mass spectrometry; Monoterpenes - analysis; Oils, Volatile - chemistry; Oils, Volatile - pharmacology; p-cymene; plant development; Satureja; Satureja - chemistry; Satureja - growth & development; Satureja cuneifolia; specialty crops; spices; Staphylococcus aureus; temporal variation; thymol; Thymol - analysis; Turkey; yeasts
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/jf0732253

The essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from aerial parts of Satureja cuneifolia Ten., collected in three different maturation stages such as preflowering, flowering, and postflowering, were analyzed simultaneously by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Thymol (42.5–45.2%), p-cymene (19.4–24.3%), and carvacrol (8.5–13.2%) were identified as the main constituent in all stages. At the same time, the essential oils and main components were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity using a microdilution assay resulting in the inhibition of a number of common human pathogenic bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the yeasts Candida albicans and Candida tropicalis. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) varied between 62.5 and 250 µg/mL within a moderate antimicrobial activity range. Furthermore, the antioxidant capacity of the essential oils and major components thymol and carvacrol were examined in vitro. The essential oils obtained from S. cuneifolia in three different stages and its main components were interacted with 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) as a nitrogen-centered stable radical, resulting in IC50 = 1.6–2.1 mg/mL. In addition, the effects on inhibition of lipid peroxidation of the essential oils were assayed using the β-carotene bleaching method. All of the tested oils inhibited the linoleic acid peroxidation at almost the same level as butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) (93.54–94.65%). BHT and ascorbic acid were used as positive controls in the antioxidant assays.