Abstract

COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS AND IN-VITRO ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF ESSENTIAL OIL OF ARTEMISIA NILAGIRICA LEAVES

Y.C. Tripathi*, Vibha Bisht and Nishat Anjum

Abstract

ABSTRACT Essential oil composition of leaves of Artemisia nilagirica (Clarke) Pamp. grown in Doon valley on the food hill of the western Himalaya in the state of Uttarakhand (India) were analyzed. Altogether 29 constituents were identified on the basis of GC-FID analysis of essential oil. The major constituents identified were -pinene (22.29%), 1,8-cineole (8.16 %), p-cymene (8.08%), -caryophyllene (7.71%), n-hexadecane (7.39%), artemisia ketone (5.59%), (+)- camphor (5.23%), -terpineol (4.65%), β-eudesmol (4.35%), artemisia alcohol (3.78%), germacrene D (3.07), α-thujone (2.56%), caryophyllene oxide (2.54%), and tetratriacontane (2.37%). Physicochemical values of leaves including moisture content, total ash, acid insoluble ash, water soluble ash and sulphated ash were determined and found well within permissible limits. Phytochemical screening of various extracts of leaves indicated the presence of volatile oil in hexane and benzene extracts, alkaloids, steroids and terpenoids in all extracts, tannins in diethyl ether, methanol and aqueous methanol extracts, flavonoids in chloroform, diethyl ether, methanol and aqueous methanol extracts, carbohydrate, protein, amino acids and saponins in methanol and aqueous methanol extracts with glycosides particularly in methanol and aqueous methanol extract. The leaf essential oil showed marked total phenolic content and antioxidant activity with DPPH radical scavenging assay.

Keywords: Artemisia nilagirica, Leaves, Essential oil, GC Profiling, Antioxidant assay.