Abstract
This work describes the study of the chemical composition and bioactivity of the essential oils (EOs) of the different organs (leaves, flowers, stems and roots) from Eruca vesicaria. According to the GC and GC/MS analysis, all the EOs were dominated by erucin (4‐methylthiobutyl isothiocyanate) with a percentage ranging from 17.9 % (leaves) to 98.5 % (roots). The isolated EOs were evaluated for their antioxidant (DPPH, ABTS and β‐carotene/linoleic acid), antibacterial and inhibitory property against α‐amylase and α‐glucosidase. Most EOs exhibited an interesting α‐glucosidase and α‐amylase inhibitory potential. The roots essential oil was found to be the most active with IC50 values of 0.80±0.06 and 0.11±0.01 μg mL−1, respectively. The essential oil of roots exhibited the highest antioxidant activity (DPPH, PI=92.76±0.01 %; ABTS, PI=78.87±0.19; and β‐carotene, PI=56.1±0.01 %). The isolated oils were also tested for their antibacterial activity against two Gram‐positive and three Gram‐negative bacteria. Moderate results have been noted by comparison with Gentamicin used as positive control.