Antioxidant, antimicrobial and toxicological properties of Schinus molle L. essential oils.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Schinus molle L. has been used in folk medicine as antibacterial, antiviral, topical antiseptic, antifungal, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumoural as well as antispasmodic and analgesic; however, there are few studies of pharmacological and toxicological properties of Schinus molle essential oils. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Schinus molle leaf and fruit essential oils, correlated with their chemical composition and evaluate their acute toxicity. MATERIALS AND METHODS The chemical composition of Schinus molle leaf and fruit essential oils were evaluated by GC-FID and GC-MS. Antioxidant properties were determined using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) free radical and β-carotene/linoleic acid methods. Antimicrobial properties were evaluated by the agar disc diffusion method and minimal inhibitory concentration assay. Toxicity in Artemia salina and acute toxicity with behavioural screening in mice were evaluated. RESULTS The dominant compounds found in leaf and fruit essential oils (EOs) were monoterpene hydrocarbons, namely α-phellandrene, β-phellandrene, β-myrcene, limonene and α-pinene. EOs showed low scavenging antioxidant activity by the DPPH free radical method and a higher activity by the β-carotene/linoleic acid method. Antimicrobial activity of EOs was observed for Gram+, Gram- pathogenic bacteria and food spoilage fungi. EOs showed totoxicity for Artemia salina and lower toxicity in Swiss mice. CONCLUSIONS The result showed that EOs of leaves and fruits of Schinus molle demonstrated antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, suggesting their potential use in food or pharmaceutical industries.

[1]  M. Kaster,et al.  Antidepressant-like effect of the extract from leaves of Schinus molle L. in mice: Evidence for the involvement of the monoaminergic system , 2007, Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry.

[2]  B. M. Lawrence.  A discussion of Schinus molle and Schinus terebinthifolius , 1984 .

[3]  A. Rajan,et al.  Antimicrobial activity and chemical composition of essential oil from Hedychium coronarium , 2007, Phytotherapy research : PTR.

[4]  Jad James A. Duke,et al.  Handbook of Medicinal Herbs, Second Edition , 1987 .

[5]  S. Manfredini,et al.  Comparative evaluation of 11 essential oils of different origin as functional antioxidants, antiradicals and antimicrobials in foods , 2005 .

[6]  D. Krishnaiah,et al.  A review of the antioxidant potential of medicinal plant species , 2011 .

[7]  Liliana Jiménez,et al.  Dietary Polyphenols and the Prevention of Diseases , 2005, Critical reviews in food science and nutrition.

[8]  T. Shibamoto,et al.  Antioxidant/lipoxygenase inhibitory activities and chemical compositions of selected essential oils. , 2010, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[9]  Mustafa Demirci,et al.  Antimicrobial activity and chemical composition of some essential oils , 2002, Archives of pharmacal research.

[10]  Sabulal Baby,et al.  Volatile chemistry of a plant: mono-sesquiterpenoid pattern in the growth cycle of Curcuma haritha , 2010 .

[11]  J. Zygadlo,et al.  Natural products as antioxidants. , 2006 .

[12]  A. Rodrigues,et al.  Antidepressant-like effect of rutin isolated from the ethanolic extract from Schinus molle L. in mice: evidence for the involvement of the serotonergic and noradrenergic systems. , 2008, European journal of pharmacology.

[13]  A. Ameri,et al.  Bioassay screening of the essential oil and various extracts from 4 spices medicinal plants. , 2009, Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences.

[14]  M. Polissiou,et al.  Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of the essential oil of Clinopodium vulgare L , 2007 .

[15]  Ana Cristina Atti dos Santos,et al.  Efeito fungicida dos óleos essenciais de Schinus molle L. e Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi, Anacardiaceae, do Rio Grande do Sul , 2010 .

[16]  H. G. Vogel.  Drug Discovery and Evaluation: Pharmacological Assays , 1997 .

[17]  M. Polissiou,et al.  Antioxidant activity of the essential oil and various extracts of Nepeta flavida Hub.-Mor. from Turkey , 2007 .

[18]  G. Pérez,et al.  Evaluación del Poder Antioxidante de Fracciones de Aceite Esencial Crudo de Schinus molle L. obtenidas por Destilación al Vacío , 2009 .

[19]  S. Said-Fernández,et al.  Evaluation of the flora of northern Mexico for in vitro antimicrobial and antituberculosis activity. , 2007, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[20]  M. Marino,et al.  Impedance measurements to study the antimicrobial activity of essential oils from Lamiaceae and Compositae. , 2001, International journal of food microbiology.

[21]  A. Ferrero,et al.  Consequences of subchronic exposure to ethanolic extract from fruits and leaves of Schinus molle var. areira L. in mice. , 2010, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[22]  M. Kallel,et al.  Allelopathic effect of Schinus molle essential oils on wheat germination , 2010, Acta Physiologiae Plantarum.

[23]  M. Maffei,et al.  Essential oils from schinus molle L. berries and leaves , 1990 .

[24]  M. Farag,et al.  Chemical composition, insecticidal and insect repellent activity of Schinus molle L. leaf and fruit essential oils against Trogoderma granarium and Tribolium castaneum , 2010, Natural product research.

[25]  X. Weng,et al.  Antioxidant properties of butylatedhydroxytoluene refluxed in ferric chloride solution , 1998 .

[26]  A. Ferrero,et al.  Evaluation of the acute dermal exposure of the ethanolic and hexanic extracts from leaves of Schinus molle var. areira L. in rats. , 2011, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[27]  M. Sökmen,et al.  Screening of the antioxidant potentials of six Salvia species from Turkey , 2006 .

[28]  T. Riley,et al.  Antimicrobial activity of essential oils and other plant extracts , 1999, Journal of applied microbiology.

[29]  A. Murray,et al.  Acetylcholinesterase Inhibition and Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oils from Schinus Areira L. and Schinus Longifolia (Lindl.) Speg , 2009, Natural product communications.

[30]  H. Bendaoud,et al.  Chemical composition and anticancer and antioxidant activities of Schinus molle L. and Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi berries essential oils. , 2010, Journal of food science.

[31]  G. Buchbauer,et al.  Actions of essential oils on the central nervous system: An updated review. , 2011 .

[32]  C. Anesini,et al.  Inhibition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by Argentinean medicinal plants , 1994 .

[33]  E. Dellacassa,et al.  Essential oils from leaves of Schinus molle and S. lentiscifolius of Uruguayan origin , 1996 .

[34]  Cecilia Díaz,et al.  Chemical composition of Schinus molle essential oil and its cytotoxic activity on tumour cell lines , 2008, Natural product research.

[35]  L. Bailey,et al.  Hortus Third: A Concise Dictionary of Plants Cultivated in the United States and Canada , 1976 .

[36]  N. Davies.  Gas chromatographic retention indices of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes on methyl silicon and Carbowax 20M phases , 1990 .

[37]  E. Haggag,et al.  Antioxidant flavonol glycosides from Schinus molle , 2006, Phytotherapy research : PTR.

[38]  M. Barrachina,et al.  Analgesic and central depressor effects of the dichloromethanol extract from Schinus molle L. , 1997 .

[39]  M. Déciga-Campos,et al.  Acute toxicity and mutagenic activity of Mexican plants used in traditional medicine. , 2007, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[40]  R. Salazar-Aranda,et al.  Screening of antifungal activity of plants from the northeast of Mexico. , 2007, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[41]  Moktar Hamdi,et al.  Tunisian Salvia officinalis L. and Schinus molle L. essential oils: their chemical compositions and their preservative effects against Salmonella inoculated in minced beef meat. , 2008, International journal of food microbiology.

[42]  M. Marchetti,et al.  Rosmarinus officinalis L.: Chemical Modifications of the Essential oil and Evaluation of Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity , 2009, Natural product communications.

[43]  R. Salazar-Aranda,et al.  Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Plants from Northeast of Mexico , 2011, Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM.

[44]  T. Shibamoto,et al.  The volatile constituents of Schinus molle L , 1983 .

[45]  L. Salgueiro,et al.  Analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the volatile components of Teucrium lusitanicum and Teucrium algarbiensis. , 2004, Journal of chromatography. A.

[46]  B. Marongiu,et al.  Chemical composition of the oil and supercritical CO2 extract of Schinus molle L. , 2004 .

[47]  N. Zanetti,et al.  Acute and subacute toxicity evaluation of ethanolic extract from fruits of Schinus molle in rats. , 2007, Journal of ethnopharmacology.

[48]  A. Dikshit,et al.  Schinus molle: a new source of natural fungitoxicant , 1986, Applied and environmental microbiology.

[49]  L. Mondello,et al.  GC–MS, GC–O and enantio–GC investigation of the essential oil of Tarchonanthus camphoratus L. , 2008 .

[50]  G. Ruberto,et al.  Antioxidant activity of selected essential oil components in two lipid model systems , 2000 .

[51]  K. Başer,et al.  Composition of the Essential Oil of Schinus molle L. Grown in Turkey , 1997 .

[52]  E. Vulliet,et al.  Changes in phytochemical, antimicrobial and free radical scavenging activities of the Peruvian pepper tree (Schinus molle L.) as influenced by fruit maturation , 2011 .