Bioactivity of the Essential Oil and Methanol Extracts of Flowers and Leaves of Salvia sclarea L. from Central Iran

This study reports the essential oils chemical composition and in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial potentials of the leaves and flowers of Salvia sclarea. GC and GC-MS analysis of the plant essential oils led to the identification of 34 components making 99.99 % of its oils. The main constituents of the essential oils were germacrene D, beta-caryophyllene, bicyclogermacrene, spathulenol, caryophyllene oxide, eudesm-7(11)-en-4-ol and limonene constituting 54.28-65.92 % of the oils. Total phenolic contents of methanol extracts of flowers and leaves, as Gallic acid equivalents, were 116.22 and 106.72 mu g/mg respectively. The extracts from the flowers and leaves showed moderate to good antioxidant activities in 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) test (IC50 = 73.00 and 81.33 mu g/mg respectively) and beta-carotene/linoleic acid assay (inhibition percentages=40.25 % and 47.58 % respectively), but the essential oils showed low antioxidant activity in these tests. On the other hand, essential oils and extracts of the plants showed moderate to good antimicrobial activity against most of the tested microorganisms.