Chemical constituents of the essential oils from Uvariodendron mbagoi

Abstract

Several Uvariodendron species are known for their scented leaves and stem bark, hence this study. The leaves, twigs, stem and root barks of the newly described Uvariodendron species, U. mbagoi Dagallier and Couvreur from Kwedijela forest (KF) and Kimboza Forest Reserve (KFR) collected in dry and wet seasons, were steam distilled to yield essential oils that was more abundant in the root bark (2.07-3.85%) than in the leaves, twigs and stem bark (0.09-0.71%). The essential oils from the root bark collected from KF in the wet season (2.07%) was slightly lower than that obtained from the plant part collected from the same locality during the dry season (3.85%). GC-MS analysis indicated that linalool was the most prominent constituent of the leaf (82.18%, KF) and (98.86%, KFR), twig (89.66%, KFR), and stem bark (97.97%, KFR) oil while methyl eugenol (41.08%, KFR) and elemicin (39.28%, KFR) were the major constituents of the root bark oil. The essential oil from the leaves, stem bark, twigs and root bark of U. mbagoi exhibited mild to moderate potency when screened for antioxidant, antibacterial, and protease (trypsin) inhibitory activities. KEY WORDS: Uvariodendron mbagoi, Annonaceae, Essential oil, Linalool, Elemicin, Methyl eugenol Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2024, 38(3), 1027-1035. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v38i4.17