Volatile terpenoid composition and antimicrobial activity of flowers of Melia azedarach Linn. from north west Himalayas, India

摘要

Essential oil of Melia azedarach Linn. obtained by hydro distillation using Clevenger apparatus was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Eighteen compounds were identified representing 92.21% of the total oil. The oil contains the highest proportion of oxygenated sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (73.99%). (E)-Nerolidol (70%), n-nonanal (4.78%), (Z)-nerolidol (3.99%) are the predominant compounds along with cumarene (1.34%), n-decanal (1.31%), as minor constituents. In vitro antimicrobial activity of oil was conducted against microbial strains including one Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and five Gram-negative (Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Klebsiella pneumoniae) bacteria as well as two fungi (Pichia guilliermondii, Candida albicans) using agar well diffusion method.