Thymus mastichina L. essential oils from Murcia (Spain): Composition and antioxidant, antienzymatic and antimicrobial bioactivities

PLoS One. 2018 Jan 5;13(1):e0190790. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190790. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

The compositions of essential oils (EOs) from Spanish marjoram (Thymus mastichina L.) grown in several bioclimatic zones of Murcia (SE Spain) were studied to determine their absolute and relative concentrations using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. 1,8-Cineole and linalool were the main components, followed by α-pinene, β-pinene and α-terpineol. (-)-Linalool, (+)-α-terpineol and (+)-α-pinene were the most abundant enantiomers. When the antioxidant capacities of T. mastichina EOs and their compounds were measured by five methods, EOs and linalool, linalyl acetate, α-terpinene and γ-terpinene, among others, showed antioxidant activities. All four T. mastichina EOs inhibited both lipoxygenase and acetylcholinesterase activities, and they might be useful for further research into inflammatory and Alzheimer diseases. Bornyl acetate and limonene showed the highest lipoxygenase inhibition and 1,8-cineole was the best acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Moreover, these EOs inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans due to the contribution of their individual compounds. The results underline the potential use of these EOs in manufactured products, such as foodstuff, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Infective Agents / pharmacology*
  • Antioxidants / pharmacology*
  • Candida albicans / drug effects
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacology*
  • Escherichia coli / drug effects
  • Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
  • Oils, Volatile / chemistry
  • Oils, Volatile / isolation & purification*
  • Oils, Volatile / pharmacology
  • Staphylococcus aureus / drug effects
  • Thymus Plant / chemistry*

Substances

  • Anti-Infective Agents
  • Antioxidants
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Oils, Volatile

Grants and funding

This work was partially supported by Spanish organizations: Projects 19545/PI/14 (Fundacion Seneca, CARM, Murcia, Spain, www.fseneca.es[1]), UMU-15452 and UMU-17766 (Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain, www.um.es[2]) awarded to JT. ABC has a predoctoral contract from Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport [FPU13/04013]. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section. Ramiro Martinez-Gutierrez employed at the company Novozymes Spain S.A. provided resources and software assistance.