Chemical compositions of essential oil extracted from Lavandula angustifolia and its prevention of TPA-induced inflammation

Abstract

Compounds extracted from essential oil of the Lavandula angustifolia by steam distillation were analysed by gas chromatography with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-QTOF/MS) and their anti-inflammatory activity were tested by a 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced inflammation method. The GC-QTOF/MS analysis identified 50 constituents, all representing 96.89% of the essential oil total composition. In particular, match factors, accurate mass and retention indexes were used to improve the accuracy of qualitative results. The main compounds identified were linalyl acetate (28.89%), linalool (24.30%), caryophyllene (7.89%), (E)-3,7-dimethylocta-1,3,6-triene (4.64%), 4-terpineol (4.04%), acetic acid lavandulyl ester (3.49%), borneol (2.60%) and eucalyptol (2.05%). Regarding anti-inflammatory activity, the essential oil was effective against the TPA-induced inflammation in mouse ear. The inhibition effect of essential oils (100 mg/kg) on TPA-induced mouse ear edema was about 58.66%. Meanwhile, the expression levels of transcription factor, nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB), inflammatory cytokine, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) were also decreased significantly. The results in this study show essential oil had a better anti-inflammatory activity than that of ibuprofen at the same dosage, which demonstrated a great potential value in application.