Chemical studies on cypress leaves (Cupressus sempervirens) and their activity as antimicrobial agents

Abstract

Cupressus sempervirens is an important medicinal plant in Egypt and the Eastern Mediterranean region. The aim of this work is to evaluate the chemical composition of cupressus leaves as medical plant. We used routine chemical analysis, chemical extractions (methanol and dichloromethane, steam distillation), and GC- mass methods to detect bioactive compounds. of cypress leaves. The results indicated that the percentage of fat was 9.55 %; moisture, 7.54%; protein, 9.24%; ash, 11.1%; fiber, 7.4%; and the percentage of carbohydrates was 55.17%. Alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols, saponin, terbines, tannins groups were detected, while ricin group was absent. Moreover, eighteen components were identified and measured. Sabinene was the main ingredient (67.46%), followed by 3-thujin (8.50%), cetronella (5.04%), 4- terpinol (5.01%). Five essential oils were detected including citronella (5.04%), followed by D-limonene (2.94%), α-citronellol (1.88%), and terpinolene (1.12%). In conclusion, pilot extracted oil of cypress leaves could be used to control microbial activity against some fungi species such as Verticillium and Aspergillus.