Chemical constituents and anti-fungal activity of the essential oils from Lantana hirta and Croton ciliatoglandulifer .

Lantana hirta and Croton ciliatogladulifer are two medicinal plants used in the ethnopharmacology of Oaxaca, Mexico. The present article describes the chemical composition of the essential oils from these plants and their inhibitory properties on Candida albicans. The principal constituents of the essential oil from L. hirta were caryophyllene oxide (32.1%) bornylacetate (17.5%) and β-caryophyllene (9.4%). On the other hand, those of C. ciliatoglandulifer were caryophyllene oxide (54.8%), cubenol (6.3%) and β-caryophyllene (5.7%). The essential oil of L. hirta oil showed a slight inhibitory activity (MIC, 4.5±0.112 mg mL-1) on C. albicans whereas that of C. ciliatoglandulifer exerted a moderated inhibition on the fungus (MIC, 0.5±0.072 mg mL-1). Under the assayed experimental conditions, caryophyllene oxide showed an outstanding anti-C. albicans activity (MIC, 0.081±0.002 mg mL-1) when compared with fluconazole (MIC, 0.256±0.068 mg mL-1).