Chemical Composition and Antifungal Activity of Cuminum cyminum L.Essential Oil From Alborz Mountain Against Aspergillus species

Aflatoxin b1 (afb1) is a highly toxic and hepatocarcinogenic metabolite producedby aspergillus species. some natural products are known to kill fungi and destroytoxins and toxin-producing agents.objectives: the purpose of this study is to provide experimental data on the antifungalactivity of cumin oils and their components that could be considered suitable for applicationin foods and drugs.materials and methods: the essential oil (eo) of cuminum cyminum l. collected fromalborz mountain, iran, was obtained by hydro-distillation. the oil was analyzed by gaschromatography (gc) and chromatography/mass spectrophotometry (gc/ms). the antifungalactivity of the oil was studied with regard to the inhibition of the growth of aspergillusflavus picc-af39 , aspergillus flavus picc-af24, aspergillus parasiticus nrrl-2999 andaspergillus niger. the minimal inhibitory (mic) and minimal fungicidal (mfc) concentrationsof the oil were determined.results: ?–pinene (29.2%), limonene (21.7%), 1,8-cineole (18.1%), linalool (10.5%), linalyl acetate(4.8%), and ?-terpineole (3.17%) were the major components of the essential oil fromc. cyminum l., and the oil showed a strong inhibitory effect on fungal growth.conclusions: essential oils could be safely used as preservatives in pharmaceuticals aswell as health and food products to protect them against toxigenic fungal infections.