Chemical composition and antimicrobial evaluation of the essential oils of Bocageopsis pleiosperma Maas

Essential oils from the leaves, twigs and barks of Bocageopsis pleiosperma Maas were obtained by using hydrodistillation and analysed by using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Several compounds (51) were detected and identified, being β-bisabolene the main component in all aerial parts of the plant, with higher concentration in the leaves (55.77%), followed by barks (38.53%) and twigs (34.37%). In order to increase the biological knowledge about the essential oil of Bocageopsis species, antimicrobial activities were evaluated against the microorganisms Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterobacter aerogenes, Candida tropicalis, Candida dubliniensis, Candida glabrata and Candida albicans. The essential oil obtained from the barks exhibited a moderate effect against S. epidermidis ATCC 1228 (MIC = 250 μg/mL), while the other oils did not exhibit antimicrobial activity. These results represent the first report about the chemical composition of B. pleiosperma and the first antimicrobial evaluation with a Bocageopsis species.