Impact of Dry and Rainy Seasons on the Chemical Profile and Antioxidant Activity of Lippia alba Essential Oil

Seasonal environmental conditions can modulate the chemical composition and biological activity of essential oils from medicinal plants. This study investigated the phytochemical profile, antioxidant potential, cytotoxic activity, and cytoprotective effects of Lippia alba essential oils collected during dry and rainy seasons. Gas chromatography analysis revealed that all samples preserved a citral chemotype. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) confirmed citral as the primary discriminant metabolite, while quantitative seasonal variations were mainly associated with minor oxygenated monoterpenes, particularly geraniol, carvone, and nerolidol. The essential oil obtained during the rainy season (A5T–RS) exhibited significantly higher antioxidant activity, as determined by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), reducing power, total antioxidant capacity, and hydrogen peroxide scavenging assays. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) evaluation using the 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) method demonstrated that both oils reduced oxidative stress in murine fibroblasts—L929, with enhanced cytoprotective effects observed for A5T–RS. Cytotoxicity assays against non-tumor (murine fibroblast-NIH/3T3, L929, Chinese hamster ovary—CHO-K1) and tumor (human cervical carcinoma—HeLa, and human hepatocellular carcinoma—HepG2) cell lines revealed selective antiproliferative activity, with tumor cells displaying greater sensitivity, particularly to the rainy-season oil. These results demonstrate that seasonal metabolomic modulation enhances the biological performance of L. alba essential oil without altering its chemotypic identity, highlighting the importance of environmental factors in the development of bioactive plant-derived products.