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. 2018 Jan 5;13(1):e0190790.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190790. eCollection 2018.

Thymus mastichina L. essential oils from Murcia (Spain): Composition and antioxidant, antienzymatic and antimicrobial bioactivities

Ana-Belen Cutillas  1 , Alejandro Carrasco  1 , Ramiro Martinez-Gutierrez  2 , Virginia Tomas  3 , Jose Tudela  1
Affiliations

Thymus mastichina L. essential oils from Murcia (Spain): Composition and antioxidant, antienzymatic and antimicrobial bioactivities

Ana-Belen Cutillas et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

The compositions of essential oils (EOs) from Spanish marjoram (Thymus mastichina L.) grown in several bioclimatic zones of Murcia (SE Spain) were studied to determine their absolute and relative concentrations using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. 1,8-Cineole and linalool were the main components, followed by α-pinene, β-pinene and α-terpineol. (-)-Linalool, (+)-α-terpineol and (+)-α-pinene were the most abundant enantiomers. When the antioxidant capacities of T. mastichina EOs and their compounds were measured by five methods, EOs and linalool, linalyl acetate, α-terpinene and γ-terpinene, among others, showed antioxidant activities. All four T. mastichina EOs inhibited both lipoxygenase and acetylcholinesterase activities, and they might be useful for further research into inflammatory and Alzheimer diseases. Bornyl acetate and limonene showed the highest lipoxygenase inhibition and 1,8-cineole was the best acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Moreover, these EOs inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans due to the contribution of their individual compounds. The results underline the potential use of these EOs in manufactured products, such as foodstuff, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Ramiro Martinez-Gutierrez employed at the company Novozymes Spain S.A. provided resources and software assistance. His affiliation does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. PCA score plots.
(A) Score plot of PC2 vs. PC1. (−) tentative two-dimensional clustering. (B) 3D-Score plot of PC3 vs. PC2 and PC1. (−) tentative three-dimensional clustering. The loading plot of PC2 and PC1 (Fig 2) shows the “characteristic” compounds of each cluster. The loadings of compounds are standardized. A high load of a compound indicates that its presence (high or low percentage of the total area) is “characteristic” of that TmEO. TmEO-1 and -3 are characterized by the high proportion of 1,8-cineole (11), as well as the average level proportion of linalool (16). For their part, β-ocimene (12), E-β-caryophyllene (31), γ-gurjunene (36) and γ-cadinene (39) are found in higher percentages in TmEO-1 and -3 than in the other TmEOs. TmEO-2 shows a characteristic high concentration of 1,8-cineole (11), and also of β-pinene (5), and δ-terpineol (19). Characteristic compounds of TmEO-4 are the high proportion of linalool (16), hotrienol (17), linalyl acetate (24) and caryophyllene oxide (43). These qualitative data are useful to explain the quantitative similarities between the clusters considered in the AHC analysis.
Fig 2
Fig 2. PCA loading plots.
(A) Loading plot of PC2 vs. PC1. (B) 3D-loading plot of PC3 vs. PC2 and PC1.
Fig 3
Fig 3. AHC dendrogram.
Percentage of similarities between studied TmEOs and clusters.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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