"Essential oil Composition, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Jatropha tanjorensis (Euphorbiaceae)"

Abstract

Background: Jatropha tanjorensis (Euphorbiaceae) leaves are traditionally used for the treatment of diabetes and also, possess antibacterial potential. The chemical composition, antioxidant and antibacterial activities of the oil were investigated. The essential oil (EO) was obtained by hydro-distillation method and characterised using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The antioxidant activity was investigated using 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging technique and antibacterial activity of the volatile oil was evaluated against 6 strains of bacteria: Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella typhi, using broth dilution method.