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The Effect of the Application of Thyme Essential Oil on Microbial Load During Meat Drying
Published on: March 14, 2018
Phytotoxicity of Essential Oils on Selected Weeds: Potential Hazard on Food Crops
María Dolores Ibáñez1, María Amparo Blázquez2
1Departament de Farmacologia, Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de València, Avd. Vicent Andrés Estellés s/n, 46100 Burjassot, Valencia, Spain. mijai@alumni.uv.es.
Abstract:
The chemical composition of winter savory, peppermint, and anise essential oils, and in vitro and in vivo phytotoxic activity against weeds (Portulaca oleracea, Lolium multiflorum, and Echinochloa crus-galli) and food crops (maize, rice, and tomato), have been studied. Sixty-four compounds accounting for between 97.67⁻99.66% of the total essential oils were identified by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry analysis. Winter savory with carvacrol (43.34%) and thymol (23.20%) as the main compounds produced a total inhibitory effect against the seed germination of tested weed. Menthol (48.23%), menthone (23.33%), and iso-menthone (16.33%) from peppermint only showed total seed germination inhibition on L. multiflorum, whereas no significant effects were observed with trans-anethole (99.46%) from anise at all concentrations (0.125⁻1 µL/mL). Low doses of peppermint essential oil could be used as a sustainable alternative to synthetic agrochemicals to control L. multiflorum. The results corroborate that in vivo assays with a commercial emulsifiable concentrate need higher doses of the essential oils to reproduce previous in vitro trials. The higher in vivo phytotoxicity of winter savory essential oil constitutes an eco-friendly and less pernicious alternative to weed control. It is possible to achieve a greater in vivo phytotoxicity if less active essential oil like peppermint is included with other active excipients.
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