Total Phenol, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activity of the Essential Oil and Extracts of Ferulago angulata ssp. angulata

In recent years, plants natural products have gained considerable attention as natural preservers for use in different industries. Due to their free radical scavenging activities, phenolic compounds can prevent a wide range of diseases such as cancers and cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. For a long time, different Ferulago species have been in use as medicinal plants worldwide. The aim of this research was to investigate total phenolics and the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of essential oil and different extracts from F. angulata growing wild in Iran. Antioxidant activity of our samples was examined by DPPH assay and their phenolic content was determined using the Folin – Ciocalteau method. Moreover, their inhibitory effects against five gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria including Shigella boidii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis were tested by using the disk diffusion method. Ethyl acetate fraction and methanol extract contained the highest levels of phenolic compounds (229.2 and 202.9 µg/mg galic acid) in this study. Also, essential oil of this plant exhibited low free radical scavenging activity (IC50= 36129.43µg/ml). On the other hand, ethyl acetate and aqueous fractions had the highest antioxidant activity (IC50 values of 20.153 and 28.28 µg/ml, respectively). Finally, studied samples had no significant antibacterial activities against tested organisms. The essential oil of this plant can be used as a flavoring agent while extracts prepared from it have the potential to be used as natural antioxidants in relevant industries.