Chemical analysis and in vitro antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of essential oils and extracts from different parts of Erica manipuliflora

This study reports the chemical composition of essential oils and in vitro antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of essential oils, hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol, and butanol extracts of aerial, flower and leaves parts of Erica manipuliflora. GC and GC/MS analyses were used for identification of essential oils. Totals of 47 compounds were detected in the essential oils of aerial, flower and leaves parts accounting for 99.99%, 99.88% and 99.97%, respectively. The major components of the aerial, flower and leaves parts of essential oils were Germacren D (14.76%, 15.55% and 13.58%), tau-cadinol (7.53%, 4.11% and 8.96%), caryophyllene oxide (3.92%, 5.17% and 8.55%), beta-caryophyllene (7.24%, 5.97% and 7.73%), and alpha-terpineol (6.85%, 6.14% and 4.18%), respectively. The essential oils of aerial (34.49%) and leaves (37.01%) parts consisted of mainly sesquiterpene hydrocarbons whereas essential oil of flower part (42.58%) included monoterpenoids. The essential oils and extracts were screened for their antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities. The results of activities showed that extracts possessed the highest antioxidant activity while essential oils had the highest anticholinesterase activity. This finding supposes that E. manipuliflora may be considered as valuable natural source with antioxidant and anticholinesterase properties for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.