Essential Oils and Alcohol Extracts of Northwest Tunisia M. communis and M. spicata: Phytocompounds, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities

Background and Objective: Nowadays, the conventional chemical compounds used in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic sectors have proven to be less efficient from an economic and health point of view. Research has therefore focused on the isolation of bioactive molecules from plants or microorganisms . Methods: The study focused on the leaf’s volatile compounds determination from Myrtus communis (McEOs) and Mentha spicata (MsEOs) as well as the evaluation of phytochemical fractions and biological activities from their methanol extracts (McME and MsME). Results: Phenolic compounds analysis revealed interesting concentrations of total phenols, flavonoids, and condensed tannins. The antibacterial activity tested on seven pathogenic bacteria has to be effectuated by the gel diffusion method. The extracts showed much better DPPH radical scavenging activity than the volatile compounds. The McEOs and MsEOs profiles analyzed by CG-MS showed a mixture of several compounds with a predominance of 1,8-Cineole (48.1%) and α-pinene (39.02%) in the case of McEOs. In the case of MsEOs, the predominant compounds were D-Carvone (78.79%), dihydrocarvone (6.16%), and 1.8 Cineole (2.33%). Conclusion: It emerges from this study that the M. communis and M. spicata leaves, rich in phenolic and terpenic compounds, constitute a promising source of diversified biological activities and can be used in agro-food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical sectors.