Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of Ferulago campestris (Besser) Grecescu growing in central Italy

Essential oil from the flowers and leaves of Ferulago campestris (Apiaceae) from two collection sites in central Italy was analysed by GC-FID and GC-MS and 134 constituents were identified and quantified by calculating the response factors of FID. Monoterpene hydrocarbons constituted the main fraction of the flower oils, with alpha-pinene, myrcene and gamma-terpinene as the major components. Sesquiterpenes gave the major contribution to the essential oils from the leaves, with the oxygenated components more abundant, alpha-humulene, spathulenol and caryophyllene oxide being the most representative. The antimicrobial activity (as inhibition zone and MIC) of the essential oils from flowers was evaluated, using a panel of human opportunistic pathogenic bacteria and fungi, by the agar disc diffusion and broth microdilution methods: the Gram-positive Bacillus subtilis (MIC = 155-310 mu g/ml) and Enterococcus faecalis (MIC = 310 mu g/ml), and the Gram-negative Escherichia coli (MIC = 310-625 mu g/ml) were found to be the most susceptible strains. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.