Synergistic antibacterial activity of the essential oil of aguaribay (schinus molle l.)

Molecules 2012, 17, 12023-12036; doi:10.3390/molecules171012023
OPEN ACCESS

molecules
ISSN 1420-3049 www.mdpi.com/journal/molecules Article

Synergistic Antibacterial Activity of the Essential Oil of
Aguaribay (Schinus molle L.)
Pedro M. de Mendonça Rocha 1, Jesus M. Rodilla 1,*, David Díez 2, Heriberto Elder 3,
Maria Silvia Guala 3, Lúcia A. Silva 1 and Eunice Baltazar Pombo 1
1

2

3

Departamento de Química, Unidade I&D Materiais Têxteis e do Papel,
Universidade da Beira Interior, 6201-001 Covilhã, Portugal
Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidad de Salamanca, Plaza de los Caídos 1-5,
37008 Salamanca, Spain
Departamento de Ingeniería Química, Facultad de Ingeniería Química,
Universidad Nacional del Litoral, CP 3000, Santa Fe, Argentina

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: [e-mail];
Tel.: [phone]; Fax: [phone].
Received: 10 August 2012; in revised form: 17 August 2012 / Accepted: 21 September 2012 /
Published: 12 October 2012

Abstract: Schinus molle L. (aguaribay, aroeira-falsa, “molle”, family Anacardiaceae), a native of South America, produces an active antibacterial essential oil extracted from the leaves and fruits. This work reports a complete study of its chemical composition and determines the antibacterial activity of Schinus molle L. essential oil and its main components.
The results showed that the crude extract essential oil has a potent antibacterial effect on
Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, a strong/moderate effect on Escherichia coli ATCC
25922 and moderate/weak one on Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853.
Keywords: essential oil; antibacterial activity; Schinus molle L.; agar diffusion; effect of vapor method of cylindrical cavities; MIC; terpinenediols; 7-formyloxysabinen-2-ol

1. Introduction
Essential oils are natural and complex volatile compounds [1,2], characterized by a strong odor, generally soluble in organic solvents with lower density than