Plants are traditionally utilized in Algeria to treat many disorders, such as
Artemisia herba-alba (Asteraceae family), which is a North African species.
In Algeria, it is characterized by an excellent fodder fee and by a
composition of essential oils having antiseptic, vermifuge, and
antispasmodic properties. The present study aims to investigate the
antioxidant and antimicrobial activities and chemical composition of the
essential oil of Artemisia herba-alba found in northeast Algeria (Khenchela
region). Artemisia herba-alba essential oil was extracted by
hydrodistillation and its chemical composition was identified by GC/MS. In
addition, the antioxidant activity of the extracted essential oil was
determined using the DPPH assay. The agar disc diffusion method was used to
determine how well the essential oil killed germs. The essential oil was
analyzed by GC/MS, revealing 35 constituents, of which the major ones were
identified as Thujone (10.55%), borneol (5.98%), and eucalyptol (1.63%). The
observed IC50 values for the DPPH assay were 18.44 ? 0.006 mg/mL. On the
other hand, this oil proved effective against all tested strains in the
22.67 ? 3.215 mm range, including Listeria innocua CIP 74915.