Chemometric Screening of Fourteen Essential Oils for Their Composition and Biological Properties

Abstract

Essential oils (EOs) obtained from aromatic plants are widely used worldwide, especially in cosmetic and food products due to their aroma and biological properties and health benefits. Some EOs have significant antimicrobial and antioxidant activities, and thus could effectively increase the shelf lives of foodstuff and beverages. In this study, fourteen essential oils (clove, eucalyptus, fennel, lavender, oregano, palmarosa, pepper, star anise, tea tree, turmeric, Chinese yin yang, Japanese yin yang, and ylang ylang) from different medicinal plant families were screened by gas-chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) for their different chemical profiles and bioassays were performed to assess their antifungal and antioxidant activities. The results obtained were assessed by principal component analysis (PCA). PCA distinguished six groups characterized by different terpene chemotypes. Amongst the EOs studied, the clove EO showed the strongest antioxidant activity characterized by an EC50 of 0.36 µL/mL. The oregano EO had the greatest antiyeast activity characterized by a minimal inhibitory concentration of 10 µL/mL. In conclusion, clove and oregano EOs are strong antifungal and antioxidant agents, respectively, with great potential in the food industry to avoid spoilage and to increase shelf life.

Comparative evaluation of the composition of vegetable essential and fixed oils obtained by supercritical extraction and conventional techniques: a chemometric approach

“…The PCA analysis of the FA data (mean values) obtained by both the extractive techniques was performed to have a comparative holistic picture of the total FA profile of SFE and HE oils and therefore a clear indication of the comparability of the two techniques. PCA is a statistical procedure amply used to summarise the total FA profile of FO (Monfreda et al ., 2014; Du et al ., 2018; Rosa et al ., 2019; Chang et al ., 2020) and EO volatile components (Deng et al ., 2014; Padilla‐González et al ., 2016; Semeniuc et al ., 2018; Vella et al ., 2020). Results of FO compositions are depicted as PCA scores plot (Fig.…”

Determination of Antioxidant Activity and Sun Protection Factor of Commercial Essential Oils

“…where A S is the absorbance of the solution when the EO was added and A DPPH is the absorbance of the DPPH solution. The extract concentration (EC) necessary to achieve 50% of radical DPPH inhibition (EC 50 ) was obtained by plotting the RSA percentage as a function of the extract concentrations and was expressed as mg/mL, as reported by Vella et al [2].…”

“…Recent awareness about the environment, healthcare, and the minor usage of synthetic chemicals has led to an increased interest in natural compounds and in developing new plant-based products. Thus, the use of plant extracts and their phytoconstituents as active ingredients is a modern ecological approach in foods, beverages, and cosmetics, as well as other industrial formulations [1][2][3]. Furthermore, these products have no side effects, a broad spectrum of action combined with high efficacy, and generally low prices [1,4].…”

The Genus Curcuma and Inflammation: Overview of the Pharmacological Perspectives

“…Moreover, in vitro analysis of volatile oils that are obtained from Curcuma caesia leaf has been shown to have extensive anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibiotic effects [ 24 , 25 ]. Furthermore, most of the species of this genus contain bioactive components, such as flavonoids, terpenes (above 40 monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes), phenolic compounds, and antioxidants [ 26 , 27 , 28 ]. In several countries in Asia, different components of these plant species have been utilized, either cooked or eaten as vegetables [ 29 ].…”