Original Articles
Kasmi Abir, Hammami Majdi, Abd
Abstract
Essential oils (EOs) and various extracts of Tunisian Schinus molle L. were screened for their chemical composition and antioxidant activities. EOs were obtained by hydrodistillation from leaves, stems and fruits of S. molle and characterized by GC-FID and GC-MS. Leaf EO was characterized mainly by β-eudesmol (14.82%), elemol (13.71%), α-eudesmol (12.76%), d-limonene (9.25%) and spathulenol (7.21%). Stem EO was characterized mainly by elemol (20.7%), 6-epi-shyobunol (20.36%), d-limonene (16.19%) and α-eudesmol (7.01%). Fruit EO was characterized by 6-epi-shyobunol (16.22%), d-limonene (15.35%), spathulenol (8.16%) and 4-epi cubebol (7.84%). Phenolic components of various extracts were evaluated. The antioxidant activities of EOs and various extracts were assessed by DPPH and ABTS assays. Our results showed that the fruit essential and the methanol extract expressed the highest antioxidant activities in the ABTS assay (IC50 of 32.6 ± 0.6 mg/L and 7.1 ± 0.2 mg/L, respectively). Suggestion on relationships between chemical composition and antioxidant activity is outlined.