Antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the essential oil from Herba Moslae

Herba Moslae is a well-known edible and medicinal plant in China, and the essential oil, which is assumed to contain the active components, was isolated by steam distillation method. The aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial activity and the antioxidant activity of the essential oil from Herba Moslae.

The essential oil from Herba Moslae exhibited antimicrobial activity against all of the tested bacteria and fungi. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for bacteria ranged from 118 to 472 microg mL(-1), and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were from 236 to 944 microg mL(-1). The oil showed pronounced antibacterial and antifungal activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Aspergillus oryzae, but weak inhibition to Escherichia coli. The antioxidant activity of the essential oil from Herba Moslae was evaluated by using DPPH radical scavenging assay, beta-carotene/linoleic acid bleaching assay and metal chelating activity assay. In addition, the amount of total phenolic content in the oil (386 +/- 1 microg kg(-1)) was determined.

This study suggests that the essential oil from Herba Moslae could be potentially used as a new potential source of natural antimicrobial, antioxidants and antiputrefactive in food industry.