Chemical composition of Melaleuca linarrifolia Sm. from India: a potential source of 1,8-cineole

• Essential oil composition of Melaleuca linarrifolia Sm. was assessed from India.
• Essential oil was dominated by monoterpenoids.
• 1,8-Cineole and α-terpineol were major constituents of the essential oil.
• Essential oil possessed moderate to good antibacterial activity against tested strains.

Members of the genus Melaleuca are potential sources of number of commercial essential oils and aromachemicals. In present study, essential oil composition of Melaleuca linarrifolia Sm. from India was analyzed using gas chromatography (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) methods. Altogether 44 constituents were identified, accounting for 98.90% of total composition. The essential oil was characterized by a higher content of oxygenated monoterpenoids (86.63%) mainly represented by 1,8-cineole (77.40%) and α-terpineol (7.72%). Results were compared with earlier reported Meleleuca species in term of major constituents from different geographic regions. Essential oil of M. linarrifolia exhibited good antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Bacillus subtilis, and moderate activity against Staphylococcus epidermidis, S. aureus (MTCC 2940), S. aureus (MTCC 96), and Streptococcus mutans. This is for the first time the essential oil composition of M. linarrifolia have been characterized from India for high 1,8-cineole (>75.0%) content.

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