Chemical Composition, Antimicrobial, Anti-acetylcholinesterase and Cytotoxic Activities of the Root Essential oil from the TunisianFerula lutea(Poir.) Maire (Apiaceae)

The essential oil of the roots of Ferula lutea from Tunisia, obtained by hydrodistillation was analyzed by combination of GC(FID), GC-MS and 13C-NMR spectroscopy. The chemical composition of root oil of this species is reported for the first time. This essential oil was characterized by a high proportion of monoterpene hydrocarbons. δ-3-Carene (72.6%) was, by far, the major component of the essential oil followed by α-pinene (5.8%), myrcene (5.1%) and α-phellandrene (4.0%). Furthermore, the isolated oil was tested for its antimicrobial activity using the disc-diffusion and the microdilution essays against six Gram-positive and five Gram-negative bacteria as well as towards eight Candida species. It was found that this oil, exhibited interesting antibacterial and anticandidal activity (MIC = 39 mg/mL against Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, MIC = 78 mg/mL against Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 13311 and MIC = 156 mg/mL against Candida albicans. The anti-acetylcholinesterase and cytotoxic effects of this oil were also evaluated in this work. Results showed that this oil exhibits a high anti-acetylcholinesterase activity (IC50 = 28.56±1.87 μg/mL) and cytotoxic activity (IC50 = 26.39±3.98 μg/mL) towards the cell line HT-29.