Antioxidant, antifungal and insecticidal activities of essential oil (EO) extracted from the Moroccan lavender (Lavandula dentata) were investigated and their chemical constituents determined. Gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses (GC-MS) were used to examine the phytochemical composition of EO. Antioxidant potential was examined in vitro by use of three tests: DPPH inhibition, reducing power (FRAP) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Antifungal activity was assessed by calculating inhibition of growth of Alternaria alternata, Botrytis cinerea and Fusarium oxysporum. Repellent potential and toxicity of EO by contact and inhalation were performed against Callosobruchus maculatus. Sixteen constituents were detected in the EO of Lavandula dentata. The major component was linalool (45.06%) followed by camphor (15.62%) and borneol (8.28%). EO exhibited a significant antioxidant activity, as measured by DPPH and FRAP assays, with IC₅₀ and EC₅₀ values of 12.95 ± 1.300 mg/mL and 11.88 ± 0.23 mg/mL, respectively. EO of lavender exhibited total antioxidant capacity of 81.28 ± 2.28 mg AAE/g EO. EO of lavender showed an inhibitory effect on mycelial growth against tested fungi and was 100% in the case of B. cinerea. EO caused total mortality of adult C. maculatus from 5 µL/L air with LC₅₀ value of 4.01 µL/L air. Significant reduction in numbers of eggs laid (99.2%) and emergence (100%) was observed in a dose-dependent manner up to maxima of 100% and 99.2%, respectively. EO of lavender also showed a moderate potency to repel insects with a mean of 34.44%. EO of Moroccan Lavandula dentata has potential to be an effective natural agent against free radical damage and could be an environmentally friendly alternative bio-fungicide and bio-insecticide.

Since some synthetic insecticides cause damage to human health, compounds in plants can be viable alternatives to conventional synthetic pesticides. Dittrichia viscosa L. is a perennial Mediterranean plant known to possess biological activities, including insecticidal properties. The chemical composition of an essential oil (EOD) from D. viscosa, as well as its antioxidant, antimicrobial, and insecticidal effects on the cowpea weevil (Callosobruchus maculatus) were determined. Forty-one volatile compounds were identified in EOD, which accounted for 97.5% of its constituents. Bornyl acetate (41%) was a major compound, followed by borneol (9.3%), α-amorphene (6.6%), and caryophyllene oxide (5.7%). EOD exhibited significant antioxidant activity in all tests performed, with an IC₅₀ of 1.30 ± 0.05 mg/mL in the DPPH test and an EC₅₀ equal to 36.0 ± 2.5 mg/mL in the FRAP assay. In the phosphor-molybdenum test, EOD results ranged from 39.81 ± 0.7 to 192.1 ± 0.8 mg AAE/g E. EOD was active on E. coli (9.5 ± 0.5 mm), S. aureus (31.0 ± 1.5 mm), C. albicans (20.4 ± 0.5 mm), and S. cerevisiae (28.0 ± 1.0 mm), with MICs ranging from 0.1 mg/mL to 3.3 mg/mL. We found that 1 µL of EOD caused 97.5 ± 5.0% insect mortality after 96 h in the inhalation test and 60.0 ± 8.3% in the ingestion assay. The median lethal concentration (LC₅₀) was 7.8 ± 0.3 μL EO/L, while the effective concentration in the ingestion test (LC₅₀) was 15.0 ± 2.1 μL EO/L. We found that 20 µL of EOD caused a reduction of more than 91% of C. maculatus laid eggs.

In this study, the chemical composition and the antioxidant and antifungal activities of essential oil from Laurus nobilis flowers were examined. The essential oil was prepared using steam distillation in a modified Clevenger-type apparatus. The chemical composition of the obtained essential oil and chemotypes was determined using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID). Twenty-five volatile compounds were identified, which made up 92.07 of the total essential oil content. The essential oil yield was 1.06 and the most abundant compounds were 1.8-cineole (45.01), α-caryophyllene (7.54), germacradienol (6.13), limonene (4.69), α-pinene (3.04), and germacrene D (3.14). The antifungal activity of the obtained essential oil was tested against seven fungal strains: Aspergillus clavatus, A. niger, Chaetomium globosum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Myrothecium verrucaria, Penicillium citrinum, and Trichoderma viride. The results indicated that essential oil from L. nobilis flowers exhibited significant antifungal activity against the tested fungal strains with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) ranging from 0.05 to 0.46mg/mL. The essential oil of L. nobilis also exhibited strong total antioxidant capacity (TAC) as indicated by its ability to scavenge free radical DPPH. Taken together, this study indicates that the essential oil from L. nobilis flowers possesses significant antifungal and antioxidant activities, possibly due to the high level of 1,8-cineole.

Burns constitute a major challenge in medical science, and plants can be part of the solution. Dittrichia viscosa L. (Asteraceae) and Marrubium vulgare L. (Lamiaceae) are widely used in Moroccan traditional medicine to treat several diseases and possess high potency to cure wounds. This study aimed to investigate in vivo the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and burn-healing effects of both plants and their mixture. The hydro-ethanolic extract of both plants was analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD). Burns were conducted on dorsal part of rats, and the wound healing process was evaluated during 21 days. Gallic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and quercetin were identified in M. vulgare extract. The analysis recorded the presence of caffeic acid, rosmarinic acid, rutin, and quercetin in D. viscosa. The group treated with the mixture showed the lowest abdominal contractions (30.4 ± 7.52) with the highest percentage of inhibition (69.12 ± 7.04%). The inhibition of paw inflammation for M. vulgare was 47.65%, followed by D. viscosa (33.86%) and the mixture (30.41%). The mixture showed the highest wound contraction at day 7 (33.16 ± 14.33%) and day 14 (87.54 ± 3.98%). D. viscosa showed the highest wound contraction on the 21st day (99.28 ± 0.44%). In conclusion, both plants and their combination showed promising results for burn healing.

In this study, the polyphenol content and the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of hydroethanolic (MVE) and hydroacetonic (MVA) leaf extracts of Marrubium vulgare L. were examined. The results indicated that the total phenolic content was higher in MVA (112.09±4.77mg GAE/DW) compared to MVE extract (98.77±1.68mg GAE/DW). The total flavonoid content was also higher in MVA extract (21.08±0.38mg QE/g DW) compared to MVE (17.65±0.73mg QE/g DW). Analysis of the chemical composition revealed the presence of 13 compounds with a total of 96.14, with the major compound being malic acid (22.57). Both extracts possess a good total antioxidant activity. DPPH and FRAP assays indicated that the MVE extract possesses a better antioxidant activity, with IC₅₀=52.04µg/mL±0.2 and EC₅₀ of 4.51±0.5mg/mL, compared to MVA extract (IC₅₀=60.57±0.6µg/mL and EC₅₀ of 6.43±0.0411mg/mL). Moreover, both extracts exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against certain nosocomial strains as indicted by the MIC values, which ranged between 0.93mg/mL and 10mg/mL. Taken together, these results reveal the importance of M. vulgare as a natural antioxidant with important antimicrobial activity.

Anvillea radiata is a medicinal plant that has been used in traditional phytotherapy in North Africa as a treatment for various illnesses. In this study, we aim to explore the antioxidant, antifungal, and antibacterial effects of essential oils of Anvillea radiata (EOAR) collected in Morocco. EOAR was extracted by the hydrodistillation method, and the phytochemical identification was carried out by gas chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). The antioxidant capacity was evaluated by the 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method, ferricyanide method (FRAP) as well as total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Antifungal and antibacterial properties were determined by use of the disc diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration assays. The microbial strains used in the antimicrobial evaluation were: Aspergillus niger (MTCC 282), Aspergillus flavus (MTCC 9606), Fusarium oxysporum (MTCC 9913), Candida albicans (ATCC 10231), Escherichia coli (ATB 97/BGM), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6633), Bacillus subtills (DSM 6333), and Escherichia coli (ATB 57/B6N). Based on in silico simulations, the inhibitory power of EOAR against nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NADPH) was evaluated. The yield of the oil was 0.96% wherein 12 compounds were identified including α-cuprenene (33.48%) camphor (21.41%) and α-himachalene (15.88%) as major compounds. The antioxidant capacity showed an IC50 of 32.36 µg/mL (DPPH) and an EC-50 value of 64.60 ± 3.71 µg/mL in the FRAP assay. The total antioxidant capacity showed a concentration of 977.51 ± 22.38 µg AAE/mg (TAC). As for the antimicrobial effects, the inhibition diameter of the studied bacteria ranged from 23.50 ± 2.31 to mm 29.50 ± 2.21 mm, while for fungi, ranged from 25.12 ± 2.82 mm to 11.42 ± 1.90 mm. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) ranged from 12.71 ± 1.59 µg/mL to 23.53 ± 0.78 µg/mL for bacterial strains and 10.31 ± 1.34 µg/mL to 22.75 ± 1.06 µg/mL for fungal strains. In silico, among all Anvillea radiata essential oils analyzed, the sesquiterpene γ-dehydro-ar-himachalene, monoterpenoid phenol carvacrol, as well as sesquiterpene α-cadinene were the most active compounds against NADPH oxidase with a glide score of −6.233, −6.082, and −5.057 Kcal/mol, respectively. Taken together, these data showed that EOAR exhibited enormous significance as an antioxidant, antifungal, and antibacterial agent.