@Article{phyton.2025.063207,
AUTHOR = {Ammar Attar},
TITLE = {Antibacterial, Antioxidant, and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of <i>Artemisia dracunculus</i> Essential Oil: Estragole as the Major Bioactive Compound},
JOURNAL = {Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany},
VOLUME = {94},
YEAR = {2025},
NUMBER = {4},
PAGES = {1225--1237},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/phyton/v94n4/60811},
ISSN = {1851-5657},
ABSTRACT = {<i>Artemisia dracunculus</i> L., or tarragon, is a perennial herb from the Asteraceae family that is extensively cultivated for its aromatic leaves, which are valued for its preventative and therapeutic properties in both cookery and traditional medicine. This study aims to investigate the antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties of <i>A. dracunculus</i> (tarragon) essential oil (ADEO), with estragole (57.23%) identified as the major compound through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. ADEO exhibited varying degrees of antibacterial activity, with <i>Escherichia coli</i> showing higher resistance (inhibition zone (IZ) = 14.7 ± 0.58 mm, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) = 2% and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) = 4%), while <i>Bacillus subtilis</i> (IZ = 24.05 ± 2.11 mm and MIC = MBC = 0.125%) and <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> (IZ = 18.69 ± 1.45 mm, MIC = 0.0612% and MBC = 0.125%) were more sensitive to its actions. Antioxidant ability was assessed using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazil (DPPH), 2,2<sup>′</sup>-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) (ABTS), xanthine oxidase inhibition, and beta-carotene bleaching assays. ADEO showed remarkable antiradical effect on DPPH (IC<sub>50</sub> = 127.05 ± 3.47 μg/mL) and ABTS radical (IC<sub>50</sub> = 89.60 ± 8.73 μg/mL) as well as significant inhibition of xanthine oxidase (IC<sub>50</sub> = 47.9 ± 2.04 μg/mL) and lipid peroxidation (IC<sub>50</sub> = 231.63 ± 5.21 μg/mL). ADEO also showed significant anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting the enzymes COX-1 (IC<sub>50</sub> = 59.2 ± 2.43 μg/mL), Cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) (IC<sub>50</sub> = 74.68 ± 1.34 μg/mL) and 5-lipooxygense (5-LOX) (IC<sub>50</sub> = 93.18 ± 1.87 μg/mL), which are involved in the inflammatory pathway. These findings suggest that ADEO, with its high estragole content, holds promising potential as a natural antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory agent for preventive and therapeutic applications. Further research is needed to explore its safety and efficacy in clinical settings.},
DOI = {10.32604/phyton.2025.063207}
}