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Chemical analysis of essential oils of Eupatorium adenophorum and their antimicrobial, antioxidant and phytotoxic properties

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Abstract

Essential oils from inflorescences and roots of Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng (Asteraceae) have been investigated for their antimicrobial, phytotoxic and antioxidant activities. Based on GC–MS, the oil from inflorescences is dominated by sesquiterpenes (55.9 %) with γ-cadinene (18.4 %), γ-muurolene (11.7 %), 3-acetoxyamorpha-4,7(11)-diene-8-one (7.4 %) and bornyl acetate (6.3 %) as the major constituents. The oil obtained from the roots contained both sesquiterpenes (34.3 %) and monoterpenes (32.5 %) in almost equal proportions with E,E-cosmene (19.9 %), γ-muurolene (10.1 %), isothymol (7.5 %), β-cadinene (7.0 %) and α-phellandren-8-ol (5.9 %) as the major constituents. Both oils exhibited significant antifungal activity against five phytopathogenic fungi. The inflorescence oil showed higher antibacterial activity against Klebsiella pneumoniae, while the root oil was more effective against Staphylococcus aureus. The oils strongly inhibited or delayed germination and seedling growth of the weed Phalaris minor in a dose-dependent manner. As evidenced by a DPPH assay, the essential oils also exhibited significant free radical scavenging activity.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to the Head, Department of Chemistry, HNB Garhwal University (A Central University), Srinagar, Uttarakhand, India and Head, Division of Agricultural Chemicals, IARI, New Delhi for providing the necessary facilities. The first author (VA) is thankful to National Innovative Agricultural Project (NAIP), Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi, India for financial support.

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The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Agricultural Chemicals, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India

    Vivek Ahluwalia, Ritu Sisodia, Suresh Walia, Jitendra Kumar & Aditi Kundu

  2. Department of Chemistry, HNB Garhwal University, Srinagar (Garhwal), Uttarakhand, India

    Vivek Ahluwalia & Om P. Sati

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  1. Vivek Ahluwalia
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  2. Ritu Sisodia
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  3. Suresh Walia
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  4. Om P. Sati
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  5. Jitendra Kumar
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  6. Aditi Kundu
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Correspondence to Vivek Ahluwalia or Suresh Walia.

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Communicated by M. B. Isman.

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Ahluwalia, V., Sisodia, R., Walia, S. et al. Chemical analysis of essential oils of Eupatorium adenophorum and their antimicrobial, antioxidant and phytotoxic properties. J Pest Sci 87, 341–349 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-013-0542-6

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