Abstract Momordica charantia L. is an essential oil-bearing plant of the family Cucurbitaceae. Not much has been described about the plant on literature survey. Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/ MS) analysis of the essential oil reported the presence of major volatile components, such as 5-(Hydroxymethyl) -2-(1-methyl-2-imidazolyl)-1H-benzimidazole (79.18 %) and as 2-Cyclohexen-1-one, 2-methyl-5-(1-methylethenyl), (R)- (13.90 %). The essential oil mainly consists of Benzimidazoles (79.18 %) and oxygen derivative monoterpenoids (13.09 %) in the total oil. The essential oil exhibited strong activity against all the tested bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus, and antifungal activity against Candida tropicalis. The highest percentage of inhibition by the essential oil was found against the bacteria, K. pneumoniae followed by E. coli, S. aureus and P. aeruginosa respectively, and the fungi C. tropicalis. The present result revealed that essential oil of M. charantia seed possesses potent antimicrobial properties and could be taken as a source for the production of future antimicrobial drugs. This is the first report where the major compound 5-(Hydroxymethyl)-2-(1-methyl-2-imidazolyl)-1H-benzimidazole (79.18 %) was isolated from M. charantia seed oil from the Western Ghats of South India. Key word: Momordica charantia, essential oil, GC/MS, inhibition, antimicrobial properties.

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苦瓜种子精油的化学分析及其抗菌活性

摘要 苦瓜是葫芦科植物精油。文献调查中对该植物的描述不多。精油的气相色谱/质谱 (GC/MS) 分析报告了主要挥发性成分的存在，例如 5-(羟甲基) -2-(1-甲基-2-咪唑基)-1H-苯并咪唑 (79.18 %)作为 2-Cyclohexen-1-one, 2-methyl-5-(1-methylenyl), (R)- (13.90%)。精油在总油中主要由苯并咪唑（79.18%）和氧衍生物单萜（13.09%）组成。该精油对所有受试细菌如大肠杆菌、铜绿假单胞菌、肺炎克雷伯菌和金黄色葡萄球菌均表现出很强的活性，并对热带念珠菌具有抗真菌活性。发现精油对细菌、肺炎克雷伯菌的抑制百分比最高，其次是大肠杆菌、金黄色葡萄球菌和铜绿假单胞菌，以及真菌热带假丝酵母。目前的结果表明，苦瓜种子精油具有强大的抗菌特性，可作为未来抗菌药物生产的来源。这是从南印度西高止山脉的苦瓜籽油中分离出主要化合物 5-(羟甲基)-2-(1-甲基-2-咪唑基)-1H-苯并咪唑 (79.18%) 的第一份报告。关键词：苦瓜，精油，GC/MS，抑制作用，抗菌特性。目前的结果表明，苦瓜种子精油具有强大的抗菌特性，可作为未来抗菌药物生产的来源。这是从南印度西高止山脉的苦瓜籽油中分离出主要化合物 5-(羟甲基)-2-(1-甲基-2-咪唑基)-1H-苯并咪唑 (79.18%) 的第一份报告。关键词：苦瓜，精油，GC/MS，抑制作用，抗菌特性。目前的结果表明，苦瓜种子精油具有强大的抗菌特性，可作为未来抗菌药物生产的来源。这是从南印度西高止山脉的苦瓜籽油中分离出主要化合物 5-(羟甲基)-2-(1-甲基-2-咪唑基)-1H-苯并咪唑 (79.18%) 的第一份报告。关键词：苦瓜，精油，GC/MS，抑制作用，抗菌特性。