Essential Oils from Actinodaphne obovata (Nees) Blume and Caryodaphnopsis bilocellata Van Der Werff & Dao: Chemical Composition and Biological Activity

Objective In this work, the essential oils of two Vietnamese species of the Lauraceae family, Actinodaphne obovata and Caryodaphnopsis bilocellata, were chemically characterized in detail in order to assess their possible cytotoxic and antibacterial properties.Methods Essential oils were extracted from fresh leaves and flowers using hydro-distillation, and their chemical components were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The antibacterial abilities were tested against several bacterial, fungal, and yeast strains, while the cytotoxicity was assessed on cancer cell lines HeLa, MCF-7, and HepG2.Results The major compounds in A. obovata leaf essential oil were (E)-caryophyllene (29.1%), caryophyllene oxide (26.4%), spathulenol (5.6%), hinesol acetate (5.2%), alpha-copaene (5.1%), and alpha-humulene (5.0%), whereas the flower essential oil was predominated by beta-myrcene (41.7%), alpha-pinene (11.6%), beta-pinene (8.2%), sabinene (7.2%), and (E)-caryophyllene (6.2%). The main constituents identified in the essential oil of Caryodaphnopsis bilocellata leaves were (E)-caryophyllene (26.0%), alpha-humulene (8.4%), gamma-amorphene (8.1%), caryophyllene oxide (5.9%), bicycloelemene, and delta-cadinene (5.4%). A. obovata essential oils showed antimicrobial activities, especially the leaf sample showed strong activity against two fungi Aspergillus niger, and A. brasiliensis with the same MIC value of 32 mu g/mL. This essential oil was also cytotoxic against HeLa cancerous cells with the IC50 of 62.12 mu g/mL. Caryodaphnopsis bilocellata leaf essential oil was inactive in the antimicrobial assay.Conclusion Monoterpene hydrocarbons, sesquiterpene hydrocarbons, and their oxygenated derivatives, are abundant in the essential oils derived from these plants. The oils' antibacterial properties differed greatly, however the leaf essential oil of A. obovata showed encouraging outcomes. Additionally, this study suggested that A. obovata essential oil may have cytotoxic uses, indicating the need for more investigation into its possible use as a treatment.