Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the volatile oil from seeds of Artemisia annua L. from Iran.

The composition of essential oil of the seeds of Artemisia annua L. was analysed by GC-MS. Overall, 16 volatile components were identified on the basis of their mass spectra characteristics and retention indices representing 95.5% of the total oil. Trans-3(10)-caren-4-ol (22.3%), artemisia ketone (18.6%), 1,8-cineole (14.9%), δ-selinene (13.0%) and α-pinene (8.2%) were the major compounds. Oxygenated monoterpenes were the main compounds with 51.6% followed by sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (13.3%), monoterpene hydrocarbons (9.9%) and other compounds (8.3%). The essential oil was highly active against Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis.