Abstract
Nowadays, volatile oils are increasingly being used for their medicinal and curing properties. Myrtus communis, a native aromatic and medicinal plant in Saudi Arabia, has been used in folk medicines for many illness and diseases. In this study, the chemical composition of the essential oil of Myrtle leaves in Eastern province of Saudi Arabia was investigated. Gas chromatography analysis allowed the separation of 48 components from the leaves' oil, however only 28 components were identified and quantified, representing 86.4 % of the separated oil components area percentage. The anti-inflammatory activity of the topically formulated oil was carried out using carrageenan-induced rat hind paw edema method accompanied by the determination of Prostaglandin E
2
in inflamed tissue. The plant oil in its topical formulation exhibited substantial reduction of the induced inflammation (42.1 %) as well as the prostaglandin E2 concentrations when compared to the control non-treated group; however, the anti-inflammatory action was less than that exerted by ibuprofen as a positive control. Cytotoxic activity was determined using MTT assay on HCT and T47D cell lines. Myrtle oil showed a dose dependent inhibitory effect on both cell lines' proliferation; nevertheless, its effect on T47D cells was more pronounced. These findings suggested that Myrtle oil excreted anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic effects where could be used as a protective agent in complementary therapy.