Investigation of the use of essential oil and fruit extracts of myrtus communis l. (Myrtle) plant as herbal drog

In recent years, environmental issues such as synthetic products, chemical exposures, radioactive and electromagnetic pollution brought by technology have increasingly raised health concerns. In order to protect against such damages and to reach healthy life solutions, the tendency towards herbal products is becoming prominent all over the world. The use and evaluation of Myrtus communis L. (Mortelle), a medicinal and aromatic plant that has wide distribution in the natural plant flora of Turkey, is gaining importance. This thesis aims to investigate the bioactive potential of Myrtus communis L. fruit extract and its possible use as a pharmaceutical agent with high bioactivity. For this purpose, essential oil was obtained from the leaves of the plant obtained from six different provinces (Hatay, İzmir, Isparta, Bursa, Sinop, Mersin) where the plant grows naturally, using the microwave-assisted extraction method. The essential oil components were characterized by GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy) method. Myrtus communis L. fruit samples were subjected to hydroalcoholic extraction. The fruit extracts of each region were dried by lyophization at -80°C and 0.05 bar. Total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) analyses were performed to determine the phenolic and flavonoid contents of the fruits. Copper (II) ion reduction (CUPRAC) method and diphenyl 2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity method were applied to determine antioxidant activity. High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) method was used to determine the phenolic content of the fruit extract samples. Antimicrobial activity analyses were performed on leaf essential oils and fruit extract samples. Leaf essential oil yields varied between 0.161-0.808 % according to provinces. The three main components found in the essential oils of all regions were 1,8-cineole, α-pinene and linalool. The determination of TPC in fruit extracts was found between 206.42-161.08 mg/g as gallic acid equivalent (GAE). In the determination of TFC, catechin equivalent (CE) results were obtained as 26.77-23.42 mg/g extract. In terms of the differences between the regions, the results of IC50 inhibition value (extract reducing the activity by 50%) by DPPH method and Troloks equivalent concentration (TEAC) results by CUPRAC method were similar. The highest activity in both methods was observed in Bursa, Isparta and Sinop samples, respectively. In chromatographic measurements, gallic acid (GA), catechin (CE), epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) contents were observed at different levels according to the regions, but the highest GA content (67.76 mg/mL) was detected in Bursa, and the highest CE and EGCG contents (347.54 and 13.35 mg/mL, respectively) were detected in Isparta and İzmir samples. In antibacterial analysis, antibacterial activity against S. aureus ATCC 25923 bacteria was found to be high (sensitive zone diameter (+/++); 12.16-15.2 mm) in essential oil samples of all regions. In the light of these findings, it was revealed that the drug material obtained from the fruit extract and leaves of the plant will meet the target of complementary health product food supplementation with high antioxidant activity and phenolic component content. Key words: Myrtus communis, Extraction, Essential oil, Flavonoid, Antioxidant, Phytotherapy.