title: Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oils from Chromolaena laevigata during flowering and fruiting stages.
abstract: The chemical compositions and antimicrobial activities of essential oils from the leaves, stems, capitula, and cypselas of Chromolaena laevigata were evaluated at two different phenological stages, flowering and fruiting. Thirty-eight compounds were identified in the crude oils by GC/MS. The sesquiterpene laevigatin was the major constituent of the leaf, capitulum, and cypsela oils, while the sesquiterpene spathulenol was the main component in the stem oils. The antimicrobial activities of the oils were evaluated against Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli. Stem oil obtained from Chromolaena laevigata during the fruiting stage generally showed the highest activity with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of 62.5 μg/ml against Candida albicans and S. aureus, and 500 μg/ml against P. aeruginosa and E. coli. Pure laevigatin exhibited MIC values of 500 and 125 μg/ml against C. albicans and S. aureus, respectively, indicating that this constituent could be responsible, at least in part, for the antimicrobial activities detected in the crude oils. More studies concerning the biological activities of isolated derivatives are required to improve our knowledge of the antimicrobial potential of volatile compounds present in native plants.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Botânica, Secretaria do Meio Ambiente, Av. Miguel Stéfano 3687, Água Funda, 04301-902, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: João H G
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lago
authors.forename: Fábio F
authors.initials: FF
authors.lastname: Perazzo
authors.forename: Karen S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: Marcos E L
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.forename: Paulo R H
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: Maria C M
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Young
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000187:drug effects; D036604:Chromolaena / Q000737:chemistry*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000737:chemistry; D018547:Plant Stems / Q000737:chemistry; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000187:drug effects; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D009822:Oils, Volatile