Phytochemical composition and in vitro cytotoxicity of the leaf essential oil of Sumbaviopsis albicans (Blume) J.J. Sm.

This study elucidates the chemical constituents of the essential oil derived from the leaves of Vietnamese Sumbaviopsis albicans (Blume) J.J.Sm. The results of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) demonstrated that the essential oil consists mostly of linalool (19.71%), germacrene D (12.08%), (E)-caryophyllene (9.06%), (3Z)-hex-3-en-1-ol (6.32%), spathulenol (4.85%), 4-terpineol (4.43%), bicyclogermacrene (4.29%), and 4-humulene (4.17%). The leaf essential oil was found to have moderate cytotoxic activity against four human cancer cell lines with IC50 values of 48.0 ± 1.26 μg/mL (A549, human lung carcinoma), 52.88 ± 3.37 μg/mL (KB, human epidermoid carcinoma), 56.81 ± 2.18 μg/mL (MCF-7, human breast carcinoma) and 59.03 ± 2.34 μg/ mL (HepG2, human hepatocellular carcinoma). In comparison, the positive control, ellipticine, exhibited IC50 values of 0.63 ± 0.04 μg/mL (A549), 0.49 ± 0.01 μg/mL (KB), 0.57 ± 0.03 μg/mL (MCF-7), and 0.59 ± 0.01 μg/mL (HepG2). These findings indicate that the essential oil from S. albicans leaves holds promise as a potential anticancer agent.