Chemical composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities and characterization of bioactive compounds from essential oil of Cinnamomum tamala grown in north-western Himalaya

The essential oil (EO) obtained from the fresh and dried leaves of Cinnamomum tamala was analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. EO from fresh leaves showed the presence of 21 compounds, whereas, EO from the dried leaves of C. tamala showed the presence of 20 compounds. In vitro assays namely scavenging ability against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, reducing power and chelating ability on Fe2+ ions were used to determine the antioxidant potential of EO of C. tamala. With regard to antifungal activity, EO from dried leaves was more effective against Alternaria alternata and Curvularia lunata than the EO from fresh leaves. Similarly, EO from C. tamala leaves also showed potent antibacterial activity against two Gram negative and two Gram positive bacteria namely, Bacillus subtilis, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Furthermore, bioactive molecule from C. tamala EO having antifungal and antioxidant activity was isolated and characterized using bioautography, preparative thin layer chromatography and GC/MS analysis and was determined as eugenol. Its minimum inhibitory amount against A. alternata and C. lunata was determined using bioautography assay and was found to be 9.5 and 8.2 mu g respectively.