Abstract
The antifungal activity of Mentha piperita L. essential oil and its comparison with synthetic menthol on Aspergillus niger growth have been determined in vitro. The chemical compositions of essential oil of M. piperita provided from the aerial parts of plants grown in a village in Kerman Province in June 2012 were determined. The sample was cleaned and then dried in the shade. Essential oil was made by hydro-distillation method andanalyzed by capillary gas chromatography (GC) using flame ionization (FID) and capillary gas chromatography coupled mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The main oil content from the plants of M. piperita was 3.26% (v/w). Twenty three (23) compounds were identified in the essential oil of M. piperita, making 96.25% of the total oil. The major components were menthol (38.33%), menthone (21.45%) and menthyl acetate (12.49%). For study of antifungal activity, the essential oil was tested against A. niger (strain PTCC = 5223) by disc diffusion method via average inhibition zone. The results showed that essential oil from M. piperita at 1 and 1/2 oil dilutions exhibited a strong antifungal activity than gentamycin (8 mg/ml) antibiotic on A. niger and exhibited a strong synthetic menthol at 10% dilution. The relative high amount of menthol and menthone in the M. piperitaessential oil showed that they could display antifungal activity. Key words: Mentha piperita L., Aspergillus niger, menthol, antifungal activity.
Highlights
Pathogenic fungi cause diseases in humans or vegetable organisms
Thirty three (33) compounds identified in the Compound name α-Pinene Sabinene β-Pinene Myrcene 3-Octanol α-Terpinene P-Cymene Limonene 1,8-Cineole (E)-β-Ocimene γ-Terpinene Terpinolene Iso-menthone Linalool Menthone Menthyl acetate Menthol α-Terpineol Pulegone Piperitone β-Caryophyllene Germacrene D γ-Cadinene Total
The combinations of menthol (38.33%), menthone (21.45%) and menthyl acetate (12.49%) with 72.27% constitute the highest percentage of essential oil (Table 1)
Summary
Pathogenic fungi cause diseases in humans or vegetable organisms. Aerosolized Aspergillus spores are found nearly everywhere, so we are routinely and almost constantly exposed to them. Such exposure is a normal part of human condition and generally poses no adverse health effects. Aspergillus can and does cause disease in three major ways: through the production of mycotoxins, through induction of allergenic responses and through localized or systemic infections. With the latter two categories, the immune status of the host is pivotal. Allergies and asthma are thought to be
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