Chemical Composition and Antiradical Activity of the Essential Oil from Satureja intricata, S. obovata and their Hybrid Satureja x delpozoi

Satureja x delpozoi is a hybrid found in south-eastern Spain, in a population in which both parents S. intrincata and S. obovata are found together. This work presents for the first time the volatile profile and antioxidant activity of the essential oils of this hybrid. The volatile profile of the essential oils from S. x delpozoi underlines the hybrid character of these plants since the p-cymene, gamma-terpinene, camphor and thymol concentrations in hybrid 1, and the same components, along with a-terpineol concentrations in hybrid 2, showed intermediate values with respect to the values observed in the parents. As regards the antioxidant capacity, the phenolic content of S. intrincata resulted in its essential oil having the greatest activity against the DPPH* and ABTS*(+) radicals. Both hybrids showed low activity against these radicals, although S. obovata showed none. On the bases of their essential oil composition and antioxidant capacity, these results corroborate the hybrid character of these two S. x delpozoi plants.