Essential Oil Composition and Antimicrobial Activity of Achillea biebersteinii Afan. (Asteraceae) from Erzincan Region, Turkey

In the present study, chemical composition determination and in vitro antimicrobial effects of essential oil of Achillea biebersteinii plant grown under Erzincan ecological conditions were evaluated. Extractions were carried out with Clevenger apparatus and essential oil composition was determined by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Microorganisms used for the antimicrobial studies were Salmonella enterica serovar typhimirium ATCC 14028, Staphylococcus aureus subsp. aureus ATCC 25923, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis ATCC 911, Bacillus cereus 702 ROMA, Enterobacter aerogenes CCM 2531, Bacillus subtilis IMG 22 and Proteus vulgaris FMC 1. As a result, a total of 29 components were detected in Achillea biebersteinii.  Among them, 1,8-cineole (20.36%), cyclohexanone (8.39%), 2-cyclohexen-1-one (5.38%) and spathulenol (4.19%)  were found as the major components.  For the in vitro antimicrobial activity determination of essential oil, disc diffusion method was used in our study. Furthermore, 12-14 mm zone diameters were detected in antimicrobial activity assay. The highest resistance zone was detected against B. subtilis with 14 mm diameter while the least resistance zone was detected against Y. pseudotuberculosis, E. aerogenes and P. vulgaris with 12 mm diameter. Consequently, it was concluded that the essential oil extracted from the A. biebersteinii grown under Erzincan ecological conditions had an inhibitory effects on the pathogenic microorganisms in used method.