Abstract
The essential oil of the Jordanian
Chrysanthemum coronarium
L. (garland) was isolated by hydrodistillation from dried flowerheads material. The oil was essayed for its
in vitro
scavenging activity using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method. The results demonstrate that the oil exhibits moderate radical scavenging activity relative to the strong antioxidant ascorbic acid. In addition, cholinesterase inhibitory activity of
C. coronarium
essential oil was evaluated for the first time. Applying Ellman's colorimetric method, interesting cholinesterase inhibitory activity, which is not dose dependent, was evident for the oil. Furthermore, antimicrobial activities of the oil against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria were evaluated. While it fails to inhibit Gram-negative bacteria growth, the antibacterial effects demonstrated by the oil were more pronounced against the Gram-positive strains. Moreover, the examined oil was assessed for its
in vitro
antiproliferative properties where it demonstrated variable activities towards different human cancer cell lines, of which the colon cancer was the most sensitive to the oil treatment.