Chemical profile and in vitro biological activities of volatile oil extracted from  Arthrospira platensis

Layla Safar Jebur Khaledi; Haider A. Alghanmi

doi:10.22034/ijab.v14i2.2803

Authors

Layla Safar Jebur Khaledi Department of Biology, College of Education for Pure Science, University of Al-Qadisiyah, Iraq.
Haider A. Alghanmi
haider.alghanmi@qu.edu.iq
Department of Biology, College of Education for Pure Science, University of Al-Qadisiyah, Iraq.

Vol. 14 No. 2 (2026): April

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April 18, 2026

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This study aimed to examine the chemical characteristics and biological actions of the volatile oil extracted from the cyanobacterium Arthrospira platensis. The results of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) showed that the samples have a chemically diverse profile dominated by aliphatic hydrocarbons, terpenoid derivatives, aldehydes, ketones, and fatty acids, including 2-ionone, phytol, and unsaturated fatty acids. The antioxidant activity of the volatile oil was assessed using the DPPH free radical scavenging assay and was found to be concentration-dependent, although the overall activity was rather moderate compared with polar extracts. The antibacterial activity of the volatile oil was evaluated using the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) methods against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria of interest. The findings showed a high level of concentration-dependent antibacterial activity, with inhibitory and bactericidal activities higher against Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus than against Salmonella enterica and Staphylococcus aureus. Assessment by the MTT cytotoxicity assay revealed concentration-dependent and selective cytotoxic activity of the volatile oil against the human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) and breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7) cell lines, while preserving high cell viability in normal human dermal fibroblast cells. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration values showed good cytotoxicity against cancer cells and low toxicity to normal cells. The results revealed that the volatile oil of A. platensis is a potential source of bioactive compounds with moderate antioxidant activity, strong antibacterial effect, and selective anticancer potential, and indicate that the oil can be used as a natural source of biologically active metabolites in the pharmaceutical and biomedical industries.

Safar Jebur Khaledi, L., & Alghanmi, H. A. (2026). Chemical profile and in vitro biological activities of volatile oil extracted from Arthrospira platensis. International Journal of Aquatic Biology, 14(2), 38–49. https://doi.org/10.22034/ijab.v14i2.2803

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