Chemical Composition and Antiproliferative Activity of Rhizome and Frond Essential Oils of Anemia schimperiana subsp. wightiana, a Rare Fern Endemic to South India

Abstract Anemia schimperiana C.Presl subsp. wightiana (Gardener) Fraser-Jenkins is a rhizomatous fern endemic to south India. Its rhizome and frond (leaf) essential oils (EOs) were isolated and characterized by gas chromatographic techniques. Thirty compounds (99.1%) of the rhizome EO were characterized, with myrtenyl acetate (50.6%), α-pinene (26.0%), myrtenol (7.3%) and trans-pinocarveol (5.6%) as its major constituents. Twenty-four compounds (97.8%), with trans-pinocarveol (43.0%), pinocarvone (17.3%) and myrtenyl acetate (15.8%), were identified in the frond EO. In MTT assay, rhizome EO showed prominent cytotoxicity against C6 (CD50 86.0 µg/mL) and DLA (CD50 6.1 µg/mL) cells. Fluorescent microscopic and caspase-3 activity assays demonstrated apoptotic cell death induced by the rhizome EO in DLA cells. MTT assay of myrtenyl acetate, α-pinene and myrtenol against DLA cells displayed CD50s of 7.4, 0.9 and 20.5 µg/mL, respectively, revealing α-pinene as the prominent constituent causing antiproliferative activity of the rhizome EO. This is the first report on the chemistry and antiproliferative activity of this rare aromatic fern endemic to south India. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT