Abstract:

The chemical composition of volatile oils from Herba Agastaches Rugosae and Herba Artemisiae Annuae and their half-and-half mixture were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted by chemometric resolution method and overall volume integration method, respectively. Meanwhile, both volatile oils and their half-and-half mixture were tested for antibacterial activity. Results indicated that half-and-half mixture of the above oils exhibited enhanced inhibitory effects against microorganisms tested when compared with each of them. Totally 48, 69 and 73 components were identified in volatile oils from Herba Agastaches Rugosae and Herba Artemisiae Annuae and their half-and-half mixture, which accounted for 93.23%, 88.85%, and 89.25% of total volatile oil, respectively. Two new components in the mixed oil were detected to be 1, 1-dimethyl-1, 2, 3, 4-tetrahydroisoquinoline and epiglobulol. Although the volatile active components of the mixture of both oils were almost the sum of components from two single herbs, the relative content of each component was changed. The active components with higher relative contents were mainly from Herba Agastaches Rugosae. Therefore, the half-and-half mixture of volatile oils from Herba Agastaches Rugosae and Herba Artemisiae Annuae has promising development value as an effective antibacterial agent.

Key words: Herba Agastaches Rugosae, Herba Artemisiae Annuae, volatile oil, antibacterial activity in vitro, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), antibacterial agent