Composition and antibacterial activity of essential oils from leaf, stem and root of Chrysanthemum parthenium (L.) Bernh. from Iran.

The water distilled essential oils from leaves, stems and roots of Chrysanthemum parthenium (L.) Bernh. were analyzed by GC and GC/MS methods. The leaf oil was characterized by a high amount of camphor (56.4%), whereas in the stem oil, camphor (26.0%), trans-beta-ocimene (23.6%) and germacrene-d (15.0%) were the major constituents. The main components of the root oil were alpha-pinene (50.0%), trans-beta-farnesene (13.8%) and bicyclogermacrene (11.0%). Antibacterial activity of the leaf, stem and root oil were evaluated using the micro-dilution broth method. The oils showed inhibitory effects on Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi, but were not active against Staphylococcus aureus.