Chemical composition, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the essential oils of Œnante virgata Poiret aerial parts, endemic in North Africa

Essential components of the aerial parts of Œnante virgata have been studied by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to afford 27 component, the major components were found to be, Citral (41.71%), α-Bisabolol (21.81%) Dihydrocarviol acetate (11.37%). The antimicrobial activitiy of the essential oils were evaluated by disc diffusion method and tested against Gram-negative Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-positive Pseudomonas aerogenosa and Klebsiella pneumonia bacteria. The essential oil showed a strong antibacterial activity against, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumonia at low concentration 25 μg/ml. The essential oils were screened for their possible in vitro antioxidant activity by DPPH free radical-scavenging test. The findings showed that percentage of reduction is 13.22 at 1M.