Chemical Composition and Antifungal Activity of Lemongrass Essential Oil

Essential oils (EOs) are liquid extracts from aromatic plants with many applications in diverse industries. Lemongrass (Cymbopogon nardus Rendle) belongs to plants known for their many biological properties. The present study was designed to evaluate commercial lemongrass essential oil (LGEO) in relationship to its chemical composition and in vitro antifungal activity against four filamentous fungi of the genus Penicillium (P.) spp. (P. expansum, P. italicum, P. aurantiogriseum, and P. chrysogenum). For these purposes, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and disc diffusion methods were used. The results from the volatile profile determination showed that citronellal (35.3%), geraniol (23.4%), β-citronellol (11.7%), citronellyl acetate (3.9%) and α-limonene (3.8%) were the major components of the EO chemical constitution. Lemongrass EO at the highest concentration (500 µL/L) exhibited the most effective (P < 0.05) inhibitory action (inhibition zones: 6.17 ± 0.27 mm, 4.27 ± 0.25 mm, 6.90 ± 0.36 mm, 5.90 ± 0.36 mm, respectively) against the growth of all fungi strains (P. expansum, P. italicum, P. aurantiogriseum, and P. chrysogenum) investigated. Based on the above-mentioned findings it can be seen that LGEO appears to be a promising natural agent with an inhibitory effectiveness on the Penicillium spp. growth and thus, it can find an application in the food industry.