Acta Pharm. 64 (2014) 495-502
Short communication
Seasonal phytochemical
study
and antimicrobial potential of Vetiveria zizanioides roots
1 Programa
de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas e Núcleo de
Investigações Químico-Farmacêuticas (NIQFAR)-Universidade
do Vale do Itajaí, 88302-202, Itajaí, SC, Brazil
2 Universidad Autónoma de
Yucatán (UADY) Calle 41 No 421 x 26 y 28 Col. Industrial, C.P. 97150, Mérida,
Yucatán, Mexico
Accepted September 27, 2014
This paper describes the seasonal phytochemical variation and the
antimicrobial potential of V. zizanioides
roots collected in Brazil. Considering the high levels of chemical
constituents and their biological activity in dichloromethane fraction, the
plants were grown in different seasons and the respective dichloromethane
fractions were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The
antimicrobial activity was evaluated against several pathogenic microorganisms
by determining the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) by the agar dilution method. The yields of dichloromethane
fractions from plants collected in the autumn and spring occurred in a higher
proportion than in other seasons. Khusimol (2) was isolated by column chromatography and identified by NMR and
CG-MS, along with other sesquiterpenes, including β-vetivenene (1), vetiselinenol
(3), isovalencenol (4), vetivenic acid (5), α-vetivone (6) and β-vetivone (7). Some extracts showed promising
antimicrobial effects, with MICs
ranging from 31.25 to 500 μg mL–1. Kushimol was slightly active
against the tested microorganisms.
Keywords: Vetiveria zizanioides (Poaceae), seasonality,
sesquiterpenes, khusimol, antimicrobial
activity