Chemical and biological studies on two Helichrysum species of Greek origin.

The chemical composition of the essential oils obtained from the aerial parts of Helichrysum amorginum and H.italicum were analysed with GC and GC/MS. From the twenty-five identified constituents representing the 89.98% and 82.06% of the two oils respectively, geraniol, geranyl acetate, neryl acetate, and nerolidol were the major components. Furthermore, it was found that the oils exhibited definite antibacterial activity against the six tested Gram (+/-) bacteria.