title: Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of Ocimum basilicum L. (sweet basil) from Western Ghats of North West Karnataka, India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Ocimum basilicum L. (Lamiaceae) commonly known as sweet basil, has been used as a traditional medicinal plant for the treatment of headaches, coughs, diarrhea, constipation, warts, worms, and kidney malfunctions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The essential oil of the flowering aerial parts of O. basilicum growing in the Western Ghats region of North West Karnataka, India, was obtained by hydro-distillation and analyzed by gas chromatography equipped with flame ionization detector and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The oil was tested against six Gram-positive, eight Gram-negative bacteria, and three fungi by the tube-dilution method at a concentration range of 5.00-0.009 mg/mL.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-five constituents were identified in the essential oil of O. basilicum. The major constituents were identified as methyl eugenol (39.3%) and methyl chavicol (38.3%), accounting for 98.6% of the total oil. The oil was found to be active against Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria, and fungi with minimal bactericidal concentration values in the range of 0.143 ± 0.031 to 0.572 ± 0.127 mg/mL, 0.781 ± 0.382 to 1.875 ± 0.684 mg/mL, and 0.312 ± 0.171 to 0.442 ± 0.207 mg/mL, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The essential oil of O. basilicum of this region contains methyl eugenol/methyl chavicol chemotype and has bactericidal properties.
authors.affiliation: Department of Phytochemistry, Regional Medical Research Centre (Indian Council of Medical Research), Belgaum, Karnataka, India.
authors.forename: Rajesh K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Joshi
keywords: Bactericidal property; Lamiaceae; Ocimum basilicum L.; essential oil composition; gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; methyl chavicol; methyl eugenol