Volatile components and biological activities of essential oils from Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt and Salvia digitaloides Diels

Abstract:

[Background] Plant essential oils are secondary metabolites with a volatile odor, which are environmentally friendly, natural, and residue-free, and it is widely used in food, gariculture and medicene, play an important role in people’s live. [Objective] To study the volatile components in the essential oils from Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt and Salvia digitaloides Diels and examine the anti-fungal and cytotoxic effects of the essential oils. [Methods] Essential oils were extracted by the steam distillation method, and the chemical components in the essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The anti-fungal and cytotoxic effects of the essential oils were evaluated by the mycelial growth rate and the methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) colorimetric assay. [Results] The main chemical components in the essential oil of P. frutescens were perillaketone (67.84%) and isoegomaketone (14.95%), while those of S. digitaloides Diels were caryophyllene oxide (9.59%), α-cadinol (8.84%), and palmitic acid (7.24%). The essential oils had varying degrees of antimicrobial effects. Specifically, the essential oil of P. frutescens had the strongest activity, with the median effective concentration (EC₅₀) of 32.78, 43.34 and 45.19 µg/mL against Alternaria tenuissima, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, and Cylindrocarpon destructans, respectively. The EC₅₀ of the essential oil of S. digitaloides Diels against Fusarium solani was 97.68 µg/mL. The median inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) of the essential oils of S. digitaloides Diels and P. frutescens against K562 cells were 282.69 µg/mL and 352.79 µg/mL, respectively. [Conclusion] The essential oils of S. digitaloides Diels and P. frutescens have strong biological activities.