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Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) essential oil

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Hazem Elshafie at University of Basilicata
Hazem Elshafie
Luigi Aliberti
Luigi Aliberti
Luigi Aliberti
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Mariana Amato at University of Basilicata
Mariana Amato
Vincenzo De Feo at University of Salerno
Vincenzo De Feo
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Abstract

The use of natural products to control several phytopathogens is now gaining a great interest because of the environmental risks deriving from the use of synthetic drugs in controlling pathogens. Salvia hispanica L., commonly known as chia, is a traditional food in Central and Southern America. The current research is focusing on the chemical characterization of the essential oil extracted from the aerial parts of chia plant (stem and leaves) using GC–MS analysis, evaluating its antimicrobial effects. The essential oil is constituted mainly of sesquiterpenes, with caryophyllenes as main constituents. Results of antimicrobial tests proved that the essential oil could be potentially utilized in controlling some phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria.
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Vol.:(0123456789)
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European Food Research and Technology (2018) 244:1675–1682
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-018-3080-x
ORIGINAL PAPER
Chemical composition andantimicrobial activity ofchia (Salvia
hispanica L.) essential oil
HazemS.Elshae1· LuigiAliberti2· MarianaAmato1· VincenzoDeFeo2· IppolitoCamele1
Received: 15 February 2018 / Revised: 6 April 2018 / Accepted: 13 April 2018 / Published online: 20 April 2018
© Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2018
Abstract
The use of natural products to control several phytopathogens is now gaining a great interest because of the environmental
risks deriving from the use of synthetic drugs in controlling pathogens. Salvia hispanica L., commonly known as chia, is a
traditional food in Central and Southern America. The current research is focusing on the chemical characterization of the
essential oil extracted from the aerial parts of chia plant (stem and leaves) using GC–MS analysis, evaluating its antimicrobial
effects. The essential oil is constituted mainly of sesquiterpenes, with caryophyllenes as main constituents. Results of antimi-
crobial tests proved that the essential oil could be potentially utilized in controlling some phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria.
Keywords Natural products· GC–MS· Caryophyllenes· Antimicrobial activity
Introduction
Recently, a great attention has been given to the exploitation
of plant secondary metabolites as well as plant essential oils
(EOs) as novel therapeutic agents in controlling several plant
and human diseases [1–3]. Many of plant EOs possess a
potential effectiveness in pest management [3–5].
Chia (Salvia hispanica L.) is an annual herb of the Lami-
aceae family, with origin center between Mexico and Guate-
mala [6] and it was traditionally grown in Central America.
Its seeds are widely used in medicine and food production
due to its high nutritional value, especially fibre content [7].
S. hispanica acquired the common name chia from the indig-
enous South American people [8] and it has been highly rec-
ommended as an alternative crop in the agricultural industry
[9].
The main product of chia is a non-dehiscent dry fruit rich
in unsaturated fatty acids, proteins, and secondary metabo-
lites which have antioxidant effects [10, 11]. The crop has
been recently rediscovered after long oblivion [12] and has,
thereafter, been experimented for growth in new areas in
Australia, America [8], Africa [13], Europe [11, 13], and
Asia [14].
Amato etal. [11] reported that chia leaves are a source of
secondary metabolites such as hydroxycinnamic acid deriva-
tives (commonly identified in other Salvia species) and fla-
vonoids found in other Lamiaceae—e.g., quercetin methyl
ether aglycones, naringenin aglycones, apigenin and luteolin
O-glucosides, and O-glucuronide. On the other hand, the
chia seed oil is considered one of the most essential charac-
teristics of the chia plant. The main oil constituent is triglyc-
eride, and the oil is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, such
as α-linolenic and linoleic acids [15, 16]. Furthermore, seed
oil contains a high percentage of omega-3 fatty acids, which
are essential in the human diet [17]. It also has high level of
proteins, antioxidants, and polyphenols [15, 18]. The seed
oil demonstrated promising antioxidant, antibacterial and
antiviral activities against various microorganisms [19, 20].
The plant is well known for its chemical, nutritional, and
biological features [21], but very little knowledge about
the EO of chia was known. Ahmed etal. [22] characterized
the EO extracted from the air-dried foliage of S. hispanica
grown on plantations in Southern California and reported the
presence of 52 different components, being the main com-
ponents β-caryophyllene, globulol, γ-muurolene, β-pinene,
α-humulene, germacrene-B, and widdrol.
Chia plant is normally not infected from any phytopath-
ogen and is considered relatively free of pests because of
the EOs content of its aerial parts [22]. There is only one
* Ippolito Camele
ippolito.camele@unibas.it
1 School ofAgricultural, Forestry, Food andEnvironmental
Sciences, University ofBasilicata, 85100Potenza, Italy
2 Department ofPharmacy, University ofSalerno, Salerno,
84084Fisciano, SA, Italy
Content courtesy of Springer Nature, terms of use apply. Rights reserved.
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Article
  • Oct 2016
There is a growing interest in essential oils (EOs) as possible alternatives for traditional chemical pesticides. This study was carried out to characterize the chemical composition of the three EOs extracted from Verbena officinalis, Majorana hortensis, and Salvia officinalis using gas chromatography (GC) and GC-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and to evaluate in vitro their efficacy against some phyto or human pathogens. The antifungal activity was investigated against Colletotrichum acutatum and Botrytis cinerea in comparison with Azoxystrobin as a large spectrum fungicide. Antibacterial activity was evaluated against Bacillus megaterium, Bacillus mojavensis, and Clavibacter michiganensis (G+ve) and Escherichia coli, Xanthomonas campestris, Pseudomonas savastanoi, and P. syringae pv. phaseolicola (G-ve) compared to a synthetic antibiotic tetracycline. Minimum inhibitory concentration was evaluated against the above tested fungi using 96-well microplate method. Results showed that the chemical structure of the three studied EOs was mainly composed of monoterpene compounds and all oils belong to the chemotype carvacrol/thymol. Results of GC analysis identified 64 compounds, which were identified based on their mass to charge ratio. Furthermore, the different concentrations of studied EOs inhibited the growth of tested microorganism in a dose-dependent manner.
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Genetic diversity among varieties of Chia (Salvia hispanica L.)
Article
  • Nov 2004
Chia, Salvia hispanica L., was a staple crop in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Despite the great potential of the species as an oilseed crop, little research related to domesticated and wild varieties exists. A study was undertaken to assess genetic diversity among 38 wild and domesticated accessions of S. hispanica collected throughout Mesoamerica by using RAPD markers. Genetic diversity was higher among wild varieties (H(G) = 0.15) than all domesticated varieties (H(G) = 0.10) and modern commercial domesticated varieties (H(G) = 0.02), suggesting a slight loss of diversity accompanying domestication and a near lack of diversity in modern commercial varieties. In addition, the preliminary results indicate that the center of genetic diversity is in the highlands of western Mexico.
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