Phytochemical compounds of anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) and antibacterial, antioxidant, and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory properties of its essential oil

Abstract

Agastache foeniculum (Pursh) Kuntze (anise hyssop) is known as a medicinal and flavoring spice plant. The aim of this research was gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of anise hyssop essential oil and analysis of radical scavenging ability, antimicrobial activity, and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity. Phytochemical composition of anise hyssop wastes and the aqueous extract obtained after steam distillation was investigated. Eight compounds were identified in essential oils by GC-MS analysis, as the major ones were phenylpropenoids [estragol-93.45% of total ion current (TIC), eugenol-0.15% of TIC, and methyl isoeugenol-2.48% of TIC]. In the anise hyssop wastes extract, four pentacyclic triterpenes were identified (betulin-36.1 mg/g, betulinic acid-2.4 mg/g, oleanolic acid-160.0 mg/g, and ursolic acid-6.7 mg/g extract). Rosmarinic acid (50.6 mg/g extract) and flavonoids-myricetin (0.5 mg/g), luteolin (0.9 mg/g), and apigenin (0.6 mg/g) were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection analysis of aqueous extract. The anise hyssop essential oil showed strong radical scavenging ability IC 50 -6.54 μl/ml. The results obtained from antimicrobial screening revealed that essential oil possessed inhibitory activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens PM_YT, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Salmonella sp., Escherichia coli ATCC 8739, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 9027, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Candida albicans, while Enterococcus faecalis remained unaffected.