In this paper, preliminary studies on the chemical characterization of Phthirusa adunca Meyer essential oil, obtained by hydrodistillation, is presented. The separation of the components was performed by GC-MS. Twenty-three compounds (94.5% of the sample) were identified of which the three major ones (76% of the sample) were β-phellandrene (38.1%), germacrene D (26.8%) and β-pinene (11.5%). The essential oil showed a broad spectrum of activity against Salmonella Typhi CDC 57 (100 μg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 (200 μg/mL), Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212 (250 μg/mL), Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 y Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 23357 (500 μg/mL). This is the first report on the composition and activity of the essential oil of this species.
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