Abstract
The composition and the antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of Lippia graveolens H.B.K. collected in Guatemala were studied. Two samples of essential oils were obtained from the aerial parts of the plant by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The oils were characterized by their high content of monoterpenes (70.0 - 87.2 %). Important differences between the major constituents were found, particularly for carvacrol (0.2 vs. 44.8 %), thymol (18.1 vs. 7.4 %) and p-cymene (6.8 vs. 21.8 %). Both oils showed significant activity against all tested Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, as well as against fungi. Nevertheless, the oil with the higher carvacrol content was found to be more active than the thymol type, with MICs ranging from 0.25 to 0.83 μL/mL and 0.12 to 0.27 μL/mL for bacteria and fungi, respectively.
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Prof. Dr. Lígia Salgueiro
Laboratório de Farmacognosia
Faculdade de Farmácia de Coimbra
3000 Coimbra
Portugal
Fax: +351-239-827-126
Email: ligia@ff.uc.pt
