Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Anisomeles Species grown in India

Abstract

Anisomeles indica L., and Anisomeles malabarica L. R. Br. Ex Sims, growing wild in India. These shrubs become gives biological effect because of chemical composition of essential oil. Now it is interesting to know available chemicals in it, which also support the claim biological activities still, by the researchers. The chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oils from A. indica and A. malabarica were investigated together here for the first time. The aerial parts (Stem, leaves, flowers and fruit) of hydrodistilled essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and antibacterial activity was individually evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Bacillus pumilus using a paper disc diffusion method. Collectively more than fourty compounds were identified in A. indica and A. malabarica, representing 98.29–97.88% of the total essential oil, respectively. The major constituents of essential oils obtained from the A. indica, were linalyl acetate (15.3%), and α-thujone (11.9%). The most abundant compounds in essential oils of A. malabarica, were - α-thujone (17.6%), terpenyl acetate (16.45%) and, δ-cadinene (11.5). All tested G+ ve & G-ve were inhibited by essential oil samples. The GC-MS results of both plants indicated the essential oil is rich in monoterpenes and terpenoids, which have been implicated antibacterial activity, comparable to gentamycin, it was used as a positive probe. The current findings also help to differentiate the valuable Anisomeles species for phyto-pharmaceuticals.

Full text

Address for correspondence:
Ushir Yogesh,
Department of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry,
Shree H. N. Shukla Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and
Research, Rajkot-360001 (GS), India.
Email: ushir29@gmail.com
DOI: ****
Pharmacognosy Journal | January 2011 | Vol 2 | Issue 18 55
ORIGINAL ARTICLEPHCOG J.
Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of
Essential Oil from
Anisomeles
Species grown in India
Ushir Yogesh*1 and Patel Krishnakant2
1Department of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, Shree H. N. Shukla Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Rajkot-360001
(GS), India. 2Department of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, Sal Institute of Pharmacy, Bhadaj, Ahmadabad-380060 (GS), India.
ABSTRACT
Anisomeles indica L., and Anisomeles malabarica L. R. Br. Ex Sims, growing wild in India. These shrubs become gives
biological effect because of chemical composition of essential oil. Now it is interesting to know available chemicals in it,
which also support the claim biological activities still, by the researchers. The chemical composition and antibacterial
activity of the essential oils from A. indica and A. malabarica were investigated together here for the rst time. The aerial
parts (Stem, leaves, owers and fruit) of hydrodistilled essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass
spectrometry (GC-MS), and antibacterial activity was individually evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia
coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Bacillus pumilus using a paper disc diffusion method. Collectively more than fourty
compounds were identied in A. indica and A. malabarica, representing 98.29–97.88% of the total essential oil,
respectively. The major constituents of essential oils obtained from the A. indica, were linalyl acetate (15.3%), and
α-thujone (11.9%). The most abundant compounds in essential oils of A. malabarica, were - α-thujone (17.6%), terpenyl
acetate (16.45%) and, δ-cadinene (11.5). All tested G+ ve & G-ve were inhibited by essential oil samples. The GC-MS
results of both plants indicated the essential oil is rich in monoterpenes and terpenoids, which have been implicated
antibacterial activity, comparable to gentamycin, it was used as a positive probe. The current ndings also help to
differentiate the valuable Anisomeles species for phyto-pharmaceuticals.
Key words: Anisomeles indica L., Anisomeles malabarica L.R.Br., antibacterial activity, GC-MS
INTRODUCTION
Even from ancient times, herbs and spices have been added
to different types of food to improve the avor and
organoleptic properties.[1] Especially popular today is the
concept of food that combines nutritional and medicinal
benets. Many natural compounds isolated from plants
have demonstrated a wide spectrum of biological activities.
Among these various kinds of natural substances, essential
oils from aromatic and medicinal plants receive particular
attention as potential natural agents for food preservation.
[2] Moreover, essential oils are proven to have various
pharmacological effects, such as spasmolytic, carminative,
hepatoprotective, antiviral and anticarcinogenic effects.[3]
The genus Anisomeles L. R. Br. belongs to the Lamiaceae
family, and comprises over 20 species whose centre of
distribution is located in the tropical Asia and Australia.
These are annual or perennial semi-bushy aromatic plants
that inhabit arid, sunny, stony and rocky regions. Many
members of this genus are well known for their aromatic
and medicinal character.[4] Three species occur in India yet,
Anisomeles indica, Anisomeles malabarica and Anisomeles
heyneana.[5] Out of these A. indica and A. malabarica were
investigated for their Pharmacognostical and various
biological activities yet.[6-7]
Anisomeles indica are used in folk medicine all over the India.
It is popularly known as ‘Jirnya’ in northeastern part of
India, where it receives widespread used as folk medicine,
predominantly in the treatment of intestinal disorders and
intermittent fever. Anisomeles indica have anti-microbial,
astringent, carminative, ethanolic extract (50%) of the herb
showed hypothermic activity and when burn acts as a
mosquito repellant. The essential oil present in the herb is
useful in uterine affections. And, Anisomeles malabarica useful
in halitosis, epilepsy, hysteria, amentia, anorexia, dyspepsia,
colic, atulence, intestinal worms, fever arising from teething

Yogesh and Krishnakant: Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Anisomeles Species grown in India
56 Pharmacognosy Journal | January 2011 | Vol 2 | Issue 18
Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis
of essential oil
The GC (Shimadzu GCMS Q.P. 2010TM) system coupled
to Shimadzu Turbo Mass MS. Shimadzu GCMS Q.P. 2010TM
30 m x 0.25 mm x 0.25 μm BPX-5 (SGE) column was used
with helium as the carrier gas 1ml/min. The oven program
was kept at 50 0c for 10 min, programmed to reach 3250 C
at a rate of 5 0 C / min, and 1 µl injection (split 1:10) at 280
0 C were made. Mass spectra were recorded at 70 eV. Mass
range was m/z 40 to 250.
The essential oil diluted with chloroform and then injected
in column. The quantication of the components was
performed on the basis of their GC peak areas on the
column.[10] Identication of the oil components was based
on their retention indices determined by reference to a
homologous series of n-alkanes, and by comparison of
their mass spectral fragmentation patterns with those
reported in the literature, and stored on the MS library
[NIST database 98/ NBS 75K]. The percentages of each
component are reported as raw percentages based on total
ion current without standardization.
Physical evaluations
The volatile oils individually evaluated to determine their,
organoleptic character, percentage volatile oil content,
density and, Refractive index.[11]
Antibacterial screening
Antibacterial activity of essential oils was tested by the
paper disc diffusion method according to the slightly
modied National Committee for Clinical Laboratory
Standards Guidelines (NCCLS, 2001) using 100 µl of
suspension of the tested microorganisms, containing
2.0x106 colony forming units (cfu/ml). Mueller-Hinton
agar (15 ml), sterilized in a ask and cooled to 45–50 oC,
was distributed to sterilized Petri dishes with a diameter
of 9 cm. The lter paper discs (6 mm in diameter, Whatman
No. 1) were individually impregnated with 10 µl of the
sample dissolved in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), which
was subsequently placed on the surface of the inoculated
Petri dishes. The essential oils concentrations in DMSO
were adjusted to 3.0 mg/ml. The Petri dishes were kept
at 4 oC for 2 h, and then incubated at 37 oC for 24 h. The
diameters of the inhibition zones were measured in
millimeters. Controls were set up with equivalent quantities
of DMSO. Studies were performed in triplicate, and the
developing inhibition zones were compared with those
of reference discs. Antibiotic gentamycin (30 µg) was used
as reference.
children, intermittent fever, gout, swelling and diarrhea.
Recently the valued plant investigated for its herbaceous
activity.[8]
A literature survey reveals a reports on the GC-MS study
of essential oil of A. indica, and none for A. malabarica.[9]
In the present work, we investigated the essential oil chemical
composition of A. indica and A. malabarica. In addition, the
aim of this study was to determine physical constant and
to perform antibacterial activity of the isolated essential
oils, which have been not reported still date.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Plant material and reagents
Plant samples of the 2 species were collected from their
type localities Toranmal (Maharashtra), and Dindigul
(Tamilnadu); India. The collection was carried out two times,
mansoon & autumn season, to accurately reect the chemical
composition of the respective plants. The identity of the
plant material was veried by Prof. (Dr.) H.B Singh, Head,
Raw Materials Herbarium and Museum, NISCAIR, New
Delhi, India. Voucher specimen number HNSIPER/Herb-
03 of A. indica & HNSIPER/Herb-04 of A. malabarica was
deposited at the Institute level.
All applied reagents were of the highest purity available
and purchased from the Sigma–Aldrich Chemical
Company.
Isolation of essential oil
The powder of aerial part (ower, leaves, and stem) of
Anisomeles indica (AIA) and Anisomeles malabarica (AMA) was
prepared by passing through sieve # 44, and kept in tightly
closed polyethylene bags. Air-dried plant material of each
was subjected to hydro- distillation for 2 h with a Clevenger-
type apparatus, and then dried over anhydrous sodium
sulphate. The oil was stored at 4 °C in a sealed brown vial
until analysis.
Microbial strains
The essential oils from AIA and AMA were individually
tested against four pathogenic bacterias: Escherichia coli NCIM
2109, Pseudomonas aeruginosa NCIM 2036, Bacillus pumilus
NCIM 2327, and Staphylococcus aureus NCIM 2079. All the
bacterial strains were grown and maintained on nutrient
agar slants. Bacterial strains were kindly supplied by stock
cultures from Dept. of Biosciences, Saurastra University
(Rajkot, India).

Pharmacognosy Journal | January 2011 | Vol 2 | Issue 18 57
Yogesh and Krishnakant: Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Anisomeles Species grown in India
In AIAEO (Essential oil of A. indica), 36 compounds were
identied, representing 98.29% of the total essential oil.
The most abundant components were oxygenated
monoterpene (26.10%) and oxygenated sesquiterpenes
(44.86%). The high percentages of linalyl acetate (15.3%)
and, α-thujone (11.9%) proved that this essential oil clearly
belongs to the mixed chemotype. In contrast, the essential
oil obtained from plant material of A. malabarica (AMAEO),
RESULTS
GC-MS analysis
The essential oils of A. indica and A. malabarica were
subjected to detailed GC-MS analysis in order to determine
their volatile constituents. Exactly 41 compounds were
identied in two samples are given in Table 1.
Table 1: The percentage concentration of compounds found in essential oils
obtained from A. indica and A. malabarica
RIaCompound
Content (%) in
AIAEO AMAEO
931 α-pinene 1.2 2.4
946 Camphene 1.5 0.7
975 β-pinene 3.35 trb
995 3-Octanol - 0.6
1030 1,8-Cineole tr 0.1
1066 cis-sabinene hydrate 0.1 1.7
1098 Linalool 0.1 1.1
1121 cis-p-menth-2,8-en-1-ol 0.2 0.2
1147 Camphor 6.5 4.7
1168 Borneol 2.9 2.9
1198 Myrtenol tr tr
1205 α-thujone 11.9 17.6
1210 Linalyl acetate 15.3 -
1229 Nerol tr tr
1235 Methyl ether Thymol tr tr
1258 Geraniol 0.1 0.1
1266 Geranial tr tr
1292 Thymol 1.8 3.8
1320 Bornyl acetate - 0.37
1321 Isobornyl formate 5.7 1.45
1328 Terpenyl acetate - 16.45
1335 Anisole 1.38 0.5
1337 2-Isopropylbenzaldehyde 1.38 0.5
1360 Eugenol 1.05 3.55
1488 n-Nonanyl acetate tr 1.1
1536 δ-cadinene - 11.5
1551 Caryophyllene 2.32 0.92
1553 Isocaryophyllene - 0.31
1819 Caryophyllene oxide 2.86 7.81
1837 Epiglobulol tr 1.25
1838 Globulol tr tr
1864 trans - Naphthalene tr tr
1864 Triuoroacetyl - isomenthol 0.1 -
1947 Nerolidyl acetate 0.63 0.2
2122 Farnesyl acetone 4.89 9.98

Yogesh and Krishnakant: Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Anisomeles Species grown in India
58 Pharmacognosy Journal | January 2011 | Vol 2 | Issue 18
was characterized by a high content of oxygenated
sesquiterpenes (38.46%) and oxygenated monoterpenes
(23.44%), with α-thujone (17.6%), terpenyl acetate (16.45%)
and, δ-cadinene (11.5) as the main constituents. Thirty nine
compounds were identied, representing the 97.88% of
the total essential oil content.
Physical evaluations
The results of physical evaluation of essential oils are
dipected in Table 2.
Antimicrobial screening
The antimicrobial activities of A. indica and A. malabarica
essential oils were evaluated by a paper disc diffusion method
against G+ve, and G-ve bacteria. Essential oils exhibited
antibacterial activity against the tested strains, but in variable
degree. Results are comparable to the antibiotic gentamycin,
used as a positive probe (Table 3).
CONCLUSION
The GC-MS results of both plants indicated the essential
oil is rich in terpenes and terpenoids which have been
implicated in plant’s pharmacological activities. The results
found in antibacterial activity, is because of monoterpenes
& terpenoids presenet in essential oils. Linalyl acetate,
α-thujone δ-cadinene, and terpenyl acetate are responsible
for bacterial sensitivity. The data indicated that Gram-positive
B. pumilus was the most sensitive strain tested to the oils
of A. indica and A. malbarica. Gram-negative P. aeruginosa
is known to have a high level of intrinsic resistance to
virtually all known antimicrobials and antibiotics, due to a
Table 2: Physical evaluation of volatile oil from
A. indica and A. malabarica
Parameter A. indica A. malabarica
Organoleptic Character
Color
Odor
Taste
Pale yellow
Warm & Woody
Slightly Pungent
then spicy
Pale yellow
Warm & terpeny
Pleasant with
spicy
Density 0.9666 0.9910
Refractive Index 1.4939 1.4897
% Volatile oil (w/w) 0.06 0.05
Table 1: continued
RIaCompound
Content (%) in
AIAEO AMAEO
2390 α-Bisabolol 5.85 2.75
2463 trans-Phytol 7.1 3.23
2464 Citronellol 1.1 1.35
2465 1,3 trans Menthol tr 2.45
2465 Isomenthol tr tr
2646 Azulene - 1.63
Monoterpene hydrocarbons 14.40 19.47
Oxygenated monoterpenes 26.10 23.44
Sesquiterpene hydrocarbons 5.84 8.46
Oxygenated sesquiterpenes 44.86 38.46
Diterpene hydrocarbon 07.09 08.05
Total identied 98.29 97.88
aTemperature program Kovat’s retention index. btr: Trace amount (< 0.1%).
Table 3: Inhibition zones (mm) of the A. indica and A.
malabarica essential oils
Micro-organisms
A. indica*
(10µl/disc)
Mean ± SD‡
A. malabarica †
(10µl/disc)
Mean ± SD‡
Gentamycin
(10µl/disc)
Mean ± SD‡
Staphylococcus
aureus NCIM
2079 14 ± 0.023 10 ± 0.028 41 ± 0.026
Bacillus pumilus
NCIM 2327 13+0.013 11 ± 0.013 33 ± 0.018
Escherichia coli
NCIM 2109 10 ± 0.027 08 ± 0.023 16 ± 0.005
Pseudomonas
aeruginosa NCIM
2036 10 ± 0.019 10 ± 0.003 13 ± 0.006
*A. indica - collection at Toranmal (mansoon & autumn); †A. malabarica - collection
at Dindigul (mansoon & autumn); ‡Standard deviation of three readings
very restrictive outer membrane barrier, highly resistant
even to synthetic drugs.[12] However, A. indica inhibit growth
of this bacterium. Conrming previous reports, it was found
that the strength and spectrum of activity varied between

Pharmacognosy Journal | January 2011 | Vol 2 | Issue 18 59
Yogesh and Krishnakant: Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Anisomeles Species grown in India
investigated Anisomeles species and Gram-positive bacteria
were generally more sensitive to the effects of the oils.
Although essential oils of A. indica and A. malabarica have
signicant differences in their chemical compositions,
showed very effective antibacterial activities. The results of
this study suggest the possibility of using the essential oil
of these two Anisomeles species as natural food preservatives,
and potential sources of antibacterial ingredients for the
food and pharmaceutical industry. Our results suggest that
the essential oils of those species may warrant further
investigation for their potential therapeutic efcacy.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author(s) are thankful to Department of Chemistry,
Saurashtra University, Rajkot (GS); India for providing
highly sophisticated facility for, GC-MS study. The author(s)
are also thankful to Shree H. N. Shukla Institute of
Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Rajkot for providing
the facilities, for Anti-microbial activity.
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