Assessment of microwave assisted and hydrodistllation extraction on Echinops persicus essential oils chemical composition and evaluation of its biological activity

Background: E. persicus which is well-known as Shakarook in local Persian botany and is extensively utilized in different parts of in Iran. Materials and methods: Essential oils from the aerial parts of Echinops persicus were isolated using hydrodistillation (HD) and microwave assisted hydrodistillation (MAHD) methods and the respective chemical profiles were analyzed by means of GC-MS technique. The in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of methanol extracts of E. persicus were investigated via using 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay as well as agar well-diffusion methods. The minimun inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the methanol extracts of E. persicus against the test microorganisms were determined by the broth microdilution method. Results: GC-MS essential oils analysis shows 29 and 36 compounds constituting 91.9% and 98.2% of the total oils using HD and MAHD methods, respectively. Furthermore, the methanol extracts of E. persicus exhibited higher DPPH radical scavenging activity than vitamin C with an IC50 value of 0.42 +/- 0.16 mu g/mL. Moreover, the prepared methanol extracts preliminarily showed promising antimicrobial activities against S. aureus with the MIC value of 6.2 mg/mL. Conclusion: This study confirms that the methanol extract of E. persicus plant exhibits considerable antioxidant and antimicrobial properties in vitro.