Chemical Investigation and Protective Effects of Bioactive Phytochemicals from Artemisia ciniformis

The present study evaluates the phytochemical constituents, antimicrobial, antioxidant capacity, total phenolic content, ferrous ion chelating, tyrosinase inhibition, superoxide anion and nitric oxide radical scavenging activity of the leaf essential oil of Artemisia ciniformis Krasch. & Popov ex Poljakov.,from Iran. Oxygenated monoterpenes (92.4%), especially camphor (32.2%), 1,8-cineole (22.4%) and trans-pinocarveol (16.8%) were the major components identified in this essential oil. Bactericidal kinetic of the essential oil of A. ciniformis indicated that Acinetobacter baumannii is the most vulnerable (MIC = 0.02 and MBC = 0.04 mg/ml, D value = 3.57 min). The total phenol content of the essential oil of A. ciniformis was estimated to be 206.20 ± 4.58μg GAE/mg of the essential oil.The ferric reducing power of A. ciniformis essential oil was determined 0.315 ± 0.08 gallic acid equivalent (mg/g).The essential oil of A. ciniformis exhibited a dose-dependent scavenging of DPPH, nitric oxide and superoxide anion radicals with IC50 values of 10.75 mg/mL, 10.63 µg and 16.81 µg, respectively. In the β-carotene-linoleic acid test system, oxidation of linoleic acid was effectively inhibited by A. ciniformis essential oil (86.39 ± 2.53%, 0.625 mg/mL essential oil). There was no correlation between ferrous ion chelating activity (IC50 = 220.90 µg) and total phenolics implying that the essential oil contains no chelating ligands. Anti-tyrosinase activity of A. ciniformis essential oil at 50% concentration (IC50) was 6.53 mg.The leaf essential oil of A. ciniformis may be exploited as a natural source of bioactive phytochemicals bearing antimicrobial and antioxidant potentials.