Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oil from Male and Female Schinus terebinthifolius

Background: Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi is a medicinal plant popularly known as pink pepper tree, commonly used for wound healing, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial purposes. Furthermore, its fruit is used in culinary. Objectives: In order to further understand the composition and bioactivities of S. terebinthifolius essential oil from vegetative and reproductive parts of the tree, we evaluated the chemical composition and the antioxidant activity of Essential Oils (EO) obtained from different aerial parts of male and female plants. Materials and Methods: The EO was extracted by hydrodistillation; the antioxidant activity was evaluated via two in vitro assays with different mechanisms of action (DPPH and ORACFL) and the chemical composition was determined via GC-MS. Results: The EO from leaf, inflorescence and fruit of S. terebinthifolius showed distinct chemical profiles, yields and antioxidant potentials. Conclusion: The aerial parts of S. terebinthifolius may be used as a natural source of antioxidants, since all samples showed strong antioxidant capacity, mainly in the DPPH assay.