Arum maculatum (Kardeh) is a well known aromatic and medicinal plant, which is widely used as food and soup in the south of Iran. Composition and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of essential oil of A. maculatum were determined. The essential oil of A. maculatum was obtained by hydrodistillation method in room temperature and was analyzed by GC-MS. The major identified components were Palmitic acid (23.31 %), Phytol (13.02 %), Methyl 9,12,15-octadecatrienoate (10.34 %) and Methyl linolenate (8.64 %). Then antimicrobial activity of extracted essential oils from A. maculatum was conducted by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). The plant showed a moderate antimicrobial activity against tested microorganisms. Best activities can be seen against Staphylococcus aureus with MIC = 32 mg/ml, Staphylococcus epidermidis with MIC = 4 mg/ml and Escherichia coli with MIC = 4 mg/ml. The antioxidant activities of the essential oils of A. maculatum were also evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assays. IC 50 values in the DPPH assay were reported: 24.86 ± 21.4 mg/ml.

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The antioxidant activities of the methanolic extracts of Ephedra laristanica growing in Iran were evaluated using ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assays. FRAP values 2.1 mmol eq quercetin/g extracts, and IC 50 values in the DPPH assay 4.6 mg/mL. This plant showed the high antioxidant activities. FRAP and DPPH assay results showed good correlations with the total phenolic contents of the plants, measured by the Folin-Ciocalteau assay (r 2 = 0.926 and 0.913, respectively, p < 0.0001). The antimicrobial capacity was screened against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria, and fungi. The extract inhibited the growth of Gram negative bacteria, being Escherichia coli the most susceptible one with MIC of 32 ȝg/mL for the extract. The results obtained indicate that E. laristanica may become important in the obtainment of a noticeable source of compounds with health protective potential and antimicrobial activity.