Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oil from Eupatorium triplinerve Vahl. aerial parts

Eupatorium triplinerve Vahl belongs to the Asteraceae family, popularly known as Ayapana. It is a perennial shrub native to Amazon rainforests of South America. Its leaves are used through infusions, decoctions, baths, and tea. It is largely used in Brazilian folk medicine as sedative, febrifuge, stimulant, tonic and anti-inflammatory. The essential oil from aerial parts of Eupatorium triplinerve was analysis by gas chromatography mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). Thirty compounds representing 98.24 % of the oil were identified. The major compounds were 2-tert-butyl-1,4-methoxybenzene (74.3 %) and b-Selinene (8.6 %). The antibacterial activity of the essential oil was evaluated against ten bacteria (including Gram positive and Gram negative) and six phytopathogenic fungi. The oil exhibited moderated antibacterial and strong antifungal activity against all the test pathogens. The highest zone inhibition was recorded against Salamella typhae (21 mm) followed by Shigella sonnei (18 mm) at a concentration of 20μl/ disc on the other standard Ampicillin 20mg/ disc showed on average of 14-34 mm diameter of zone inhibition against the test organism. The lowest antifungal activities were recorded against Macrophomina phaseoline, and Botryodiplodia theobromae. The highest Alternaria alternate (12000 ppm). Further pharmacological and toxicology studies will be required to establish the therapeutic uses of this oil.