Abstract
Aim: The present study is aimed to isolate the essential oil of Citrus limettioides and analyze its chemical composition and antimicrobial potential. Methods: The essential oil (EO) isolated by hydro-distillation from the peel of fully matured ripen fruits of Citrus limettioides Tanaka and analysed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). The antifungal activity in terms of zone of inhibition and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the essential oil was tested against ten food borne fungal strains and ten bacterial strains. The EO was also examined for any possible toxicity or adverse effect resulting from its consumption. Results: Fourteen different components were identified constituting approximately ≥99% of the oil. The major components were dl-limonene (89.089%), β-myrcene (2.933%), (±)-linalool (2.927%), α-pinene (0.865%), (E)-citral (0.749%) etc. According to disc diffusion assay and broth micro-dilution method showed that EO has a wide spectrum of antimicrobial activity against the tested strains with their MIC ranging from 3.12 μl/ml to50 μl/ml. Conclusion: It can be concluded that EO of Citrus limettioides can be used in skincare formulations for acne control, in treatment of various infectious diseases like typhoid fever, food poisoning, inflammation, sepsis, endocarditis, bladder, prostate and epididymal infections. Along with this it can also be used as safer and alternative means of food preservation. No serious or life-threatening side effects were observed on the haematological and biochemical parameters of mice fed with specific dose of EO of Citrus limettioides, therefore the EO can be recommended as safe fumigant for preservation of food commodities.
Highlights
Citrus (Rutaceae) is an ancient crop, with records of human cultivation extending back to at least 2100 BC [1]
The citrus essential oil has been identified in different parts of fruits as well as in leaves, showing that dl-limonene, β-myrcene, α-pinene, sabinene, Δ-3-carene, α-terpinolene and other elements are the major aromatic compounds of many citrus species [5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14]
In our search for commercially useful essential oils, we selected to study the essential oil of Citrus limettioides Tanaka, as this species has not been investigated for its chemical composition and any biological activity
Summary
Citrus (Rutaceae) is an ancient crop, with records of human cultivation extending back to at least 2100 BC [1]. The citrus essential oil has been identified in different parts of fruits (preferably in fruit flavedo) as well as in leaves, showing that dl-limonene, β-myrcene, α-pinene, sabinene, Δ-3-carene, α-terpinolene and other elements are the major aromatic compounds of many citrus species [5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14] These aromatic compounds are relatively inexpensive and abundant raw materials with applications in flavour and food industries [15]. Citrus essential oils have been recognised as safe due to their wide spectrum of biological activities such as antimicrobial, antioxidant anti-inflammatory and anxio lytic [17,18,19] Due to their great nutraceutical and economic importance, numerous investigations have been performed aimed at identifying the chemical composition, antimicrobial activities of the essential oils from peel of different citrus species. In our search for commercially useful essential oils, we selected to study the essential oil of Citrus limettioides Tanaka, as this species has not been investigated for its chemical composition and any biological activity
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
