Chemical Composition and Antimicrobial Activity of Pimpinella kotschyana Boiss. Oil in Iran

Pimpinella kotschyana were collected from Lavasanat in Tehran province. Essential oils were isolated by hydro-distillation from different parts of P kotschyana individually. The yields of stem plus the leaf, aerial parts, inflorescence and seed I, seed II and seed III (first, second and third collection) oils were 0.05 %, 0.31 %, 0.65 %, 7.10 %, 5.16 % and 5.32 % w/w (dried weight), respectively. The oils from inflorescence and seed parts of P kotschyana were analyzed by GC and GC-MS. beta-caryophyllene (40.5 %, 49.9 %, 40.6 % and 40.8 %), germacrene D (29.9 %, 11.7 %, 11. 3% and 12.4 %) and langipinanol (7.2 %, 18.0 %, 17.6 % and 19.3 %) were major constituents in inflorescence, seed I, seed II and seed III oils, respectively. Limonene (7.8 %) was found only in the oil of seed II. The antibacterial activity of essential oil analyzed was determined by disk diffusion method against Gram positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus luteus and Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram negative bacteria (Y ersinia enterocolitica, Klebsiella oxytoca, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Serratia marcescens, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa). It seemed that antibacterial activity of essential oil depends on bacterial species and essential oil composition as the seed II stage essential oils against Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and inflorescence seed I and seed II essential oils against Escherichia coli were more than used commercial antibiotics. Whereas the effect of commercial antibiotics against other tested bacteria were more than essential oils.