title: Composition and antibacterial activity of heracleum transcaucasicum and heracleum anisactis aerial parts essential oil.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Two plant essential oils (EOs), including those from Heracleum transcaucasicum and Heracleum anisactiss (Umbeliferae) were studied to detect the chemical constituents and evaluated for their antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  
  
  METHODS
  The EOs of H. transcaucasicum and H.anisactis (Apiacae) were obtained by hydrodistillation from aerial parts of the plants. The chemical analyses of the EOs were performed by GC/Mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Myristicin was found to be the principal constituent in both EOs. The susceptibility tests of EOs were performed by agar disc diffusion technique against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eight components comprising 99.97% of the total essential oil of H. transcaucasicum and a total of three compounds accounting for 98.5% of the total oil composition of aerial parts of H. anisactis were identified, of which myristicin was the main compound in both EOs. The EOs of H. transcaucasicum and H. anisactis showed weak antibacterial property against Gram-positive strains of Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis with no measurable effect on Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our GC-MS study revealed myristicin to be the major constituent of H. transcaucasicum and H.anisactis aerial parts. In spite of all the information available on the antibacterial properties of plants essential oils, we were not able to find significant antibacterial activity for both EOs.
authors: Students' Research Committee, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Iran.
authors: Mohammadali
authors: M
authors: Torbati
authors: Hossein
authors: H
authors: Nazemiyeh
authors: Farzaneh
authors: F
authors: Lotfipour
authors: Solmaz
authors: S
authors: Asnaashari
authors: Mahboob
authors: M
authors: Nemati
authors: Fatemeh
authors: F
authors: Fathiazad
keywords: Essential oil composition; GC/MS Spectrometry; Heracleum anisactis; Heracleum transcaucasicum; Myristcin; Umbelliferae