Chemical Composition, Antimicrobial, and Cytotoxic Activities of Leaf, Fruit, and Branch Essential Oils Obtained From Zanthoxylum nitidum Grown in Vietnam

Abstract

Zanthoxylum nitidum (Roxb.) DC is a traditional Vietnamese medicine to treat coughs, stomachache, toothache, blood stagnation, and sore throats. The essential oils (EOs) of the leaves, fruits, and stems of this plant were extracted by hydrodistillation and subjected to analysis by gas chromatography (GC)-flame ionization detector (FID) and GC-mass spectrometry (MS). The isolated EOs were then evaluated in terms of their antimicrobial activity by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assay and in vitro cytotoxic effect against 5 human tumor cell lines. GC-MS-FID analysis showed 35, 32, and 25 compounds accounting for 97.6%, 91.7%, and 96.2% of the total EO contents from the leaves, fruits, and stems, respectively. The major compounds of the leaf EO were limonene (44.3%), β-caryophyllene (12.5%), linalool (11.0%), germacrene D (5.3%), and α-pinene (4.9%); the major compounds of the fruit EO were n-pentadecane (34.8%), sabinene (18.3%), and n-heptadecane (4.7%), and the major components of the stem EO were 2-undecanone (72.3%), β-caryophyllene (5.8%), and germacrene D (4.0%). The EOs of leaves, fruits, and stems of Z. nitidum exhibited antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, and Fusarium oxysporum with MIC values of 100 µg/mL. The leaf and branch EOs exhibited cytotoxic activity against all tested cancer cell lines, especially A-549 and HepG-2. Findings from the present study provide important knowledge about the potential uses of Z. nitidum EOs as a natural antibacterial and antitumor agents.