Analysis of essential oil of Coridothymus capitatus (L.) and its antibacterial and antifungal activity

The water-distilled essential oil the leaves of Coridothymus capitatus were analyzed by GC/MS and also analyzed by direct thermal desorption GC/MS. Comparison was made between two analyses techniques. The essential oil consisted mainly of monoterpenes 98.9%, while oxygenated hydrocarbons were identified as 55.6 % and non-oxygenated hydrocarbons as 43.6 %. As major components were found carvacrol (35.6 %), p-cymene (21.0 %), thymol (18.6 %), gamma-terpinene (12.3 %), alpha-terpinene (3.2 %), beta-myrcene (3.0 %) and alpha-thujene (1.3 %) by hydrodistillation and by the GC/MS method. The direct thermal desorption GC/MS analysis also showed the same major components, namely carvacrol (51.6 %), thymol (21.7 %), p-cymene (9.7 %) gamma-terpinene (8.2 %), alpha-terpinene (1.64 %). The essential oil of C. capitatus showed strong activity against S. aureus, P vulgaris, P aeruginosa, E. coli, K. pneumonia, R subtilis, E. faecalis, S. epidermidis and C albicans.