Rosmarinus eriocalyx: An alternative to Rosmarinus officinalis as a source of antioxidant compounds

•Rosmarinus eriocalyx is a spice used in Algeria as a food additive.•Ethanolic extracts are rich of rosmarinic and carnosic acids and carnosol.•Essential oils belonged to camphor chemotype.•Ethanolic extracts exhibited relevant antioxidant capacity.•Antimicrobial activity was moderate.

Rosmarinus eriocalyx is an aromatic evergreen bush endemic to Algeria where it is used as a condiment to flavour soups and meat and as a traditional remedy. In the present work we have analyzed for the first time the phenolic composition of polar extracts obtained from stems, leaves and flowers of R. eriocalyx by HPLC, and determined the antioxidant and antimicrobial effects by DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, ORAC and agar disc diffusion methods, respectively. Results showed that ethanolic extracts of leaves and flowers are a rich source of phenolic compounds, mainly rosmarinic acid, carnosic acid and carnosol that are the main responsible for the noteworthy antioxidant activity observed in the assays. This study showed that R. eriocalyx might be a spice to be included in the European food additive list and used as a preservative agent besides R. officinalis.

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