Valorization of Pistacia lentiscus extracts from Morocco: phytochemistry and antibacterial activity

Pistacia lentiscus of the Anacardiaceae family is very abundant in the Ouazzane region (Morocco) and is widely used by the local population for its therapeutic power. Initially, inductively coupled plasma (ICP) spectrometry was used to conduct a quality control, characterizing the metal content in this plant. The essential oil extracted from the aerial parts of this plant was characterized using GC/MS and subsequently tested for its antibacterial potential against different strains by the solid medium diffusion method and molecular docking technique. The yield of the essential oil obtained was 0.22 ± 0.02%. The composition of the essential oil determined by GC/MS allowed us to identify 31 of the constituents, the major ones being 1, 8-cineole (29.17%), α-pinene (25.2%), myrtenylacetate (19.62%), limonene (9.64%) and α-terpineol (4.28%). Antibacterial tests revealed that the essential oils exerted considerable effects on the bacteria tested, particularly against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the three species of Escherichia. Molecular docking showed that carveol and pinocarvylacetate contributed to the high antibacterial potency of this essential oil. These compounds are highly active against the quorum sensing protein, triggering the antibacterial phenomenon.