Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine essential oil composition, biological activities and safety evaluation of Hedychium spicatum seeds. The phytochemical constituents of essential oil were investigated using gas chromatography-flame ionization detector and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Twenty three components were characterized, representing 97.8 % of the total essential oil. Major components of the essential oil were found as beta-pinene (64.0 %), alpha-pinene (17.0 %), alpha-humulene (5.4 %) and E-caryophyllene (4.2 %). The obtained essential oil was evaluated for anticancer activity against human skin carcinoma A431, human lung carcinoma A549 and human cervical cancer SiHa cells, which showed half maximal inhibitory concentration values 71.2, 96.9 and 171.7 μg/ml, respectively. The toxicity of the essential oil was assessed against mouse splenocytes using (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay. Also, the oil was tested against a series of gram-positive and gramnegative bacteria. Bacillus subtilis MTCC121 was the most susceptible to the essential oil with minimum inhibitory concentration at 1 % v/v. The observed findings indicated that essential oil possess good cytotoxicity as well as antibacterial properties.