CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF THE ESSENTIAL OIL OF Helichrysum italicum (ROTH) G. DON FROM BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

In this paper, chemical composition and in vitro antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don from Ljubuški (West Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina) was analysed. Essential oil was isolated by steam distillation and analysed by GC/MS method. Antimicrobial activity was carried out by agar-disc diffusion assay with Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria and one yeast. The main components of this essential oil were α-pinene, neryl acetate, γ-curcumene and beta-selinene. Total 41 compounds were identified. The antimicrobial assay showed that immortelle essential oil has moderate antimicrobial potential with Gram-positive bacteria. Results of the study provide a basis for the evaluation of the potential use of essential oil from H. italicum as a source of alternative antibiotics from natural resources and a potential replacement of commercial antibiotics especially in dermo-cosmetics. The results of this paper and comparison to other authors confirmed that the efficacy of immortelle essential oil, as an antimicrobial agent, largely depends on its composition.