Chemical Composition and Antimicrobial Study of Essential Oil from the Leaves ofEupatorium odoratumLinn. From Upper Assam region

The essential oil from the dried leaves of Eupatorium odoratum Linn. was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The major components were α-pinene (9.64 %), β-pinene, (4.85 %), germacrene D (20.27 %) , geijerene (25.10 %), trans-β- caryophyllene (10.04 %), and other components were presents in trace quantities. The leaf oil was screened for in vitro antibacterial activity and was tested against both gram positive and gram negative bacterial strains. The essential oil was found to be more active against E. coli (MIC=125 µg/ml) and B .Subtilis (MIC=62.5 µg/ml) respectively.