Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oils from New Caledonian Citrus macroptera and Citrus hystrix

Chem Biodivers. 2010 Apr;7(4):871-7. doi: 10.1002/cbdv.200900196.

Abstract

The essential oils from the leaves of Citrus macroptera and C. hystrix, collected in New Caledonia, have been analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and evaluated for their antimicrobial activity. A total of 35 and 38 constituents were identified, representing 99.1 and 89.0% of the essential oils, respectively. Both essential oils were rich in monoterpenes (96.1 and 87.0%, resp.), with beta-pinene as major component (33.3 and 10.9%, resp.), and poor in limonene (2.4 and 4.7%, resp.). Other main components of C. macroptera oil were alpha-pinene (25.3%), p-cimene (17.6%), (E)-beta-ocimene (6.7%), and sabinene (4.8%). The essential oil of C. hystrix was characterized by high contents of terpinen-4-ol (13.0%), alpha-terpineol (7.6%), 1,8-cineole (6.4%), and citronellol (6.0%). The antimicrobial activity was evaluated against five bacteria and five fungi strains. Both oils were inactive against bacteria. However, the C. macroptera leaf oil exhibited a pronounced activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. interdigitale, with a minimal-inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 12.5 microg/ml.

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Infective Agents / chemistry*
  • Anti-Infective Agents / pharmacology
  • Citrus / chemistry*
  • Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Oils, Volatile / chemistry*
  • Oils, Volatile / pharmacology
  • Plant Leaves / chemistry

Substances

  • Anti-Infective Agents
  • Oils, Volatile