Phytochemical Profiling, Biological Activities, and Molecular Docking Studies of Essential Oils from <i>Ziziphus leucodermis</i> (Baker) O. Schwartz

The current study describes the chemical profiles and biological activities of essential oils (EOs) from Ziziphus leucodermis stem and leaves for the first time. Higher quantity of β-eudesmol (1) was found in stem (43.4 ± 0.68%) compared to leave's oil, while leaves contained higher amounts of α-bergamotene (2, 13.5 ± 0.65%) and β-eudesmene (3, 7.4 ± 0.51%) compared to stem. Significant potential was shown by leave's oil having IC₅₀ of 133.5 ± 0.80 µg/mL than stem's oil (IC₅₀ = 210.4 ± 0.20 µg/mL) against breast cancer (MDA-MB-231) cells. Similarly, higher inhibition was observed by leave's oil (IC₅₀ = 1.61 ± 0.08 µg/mL) than stem's oil (IC₅₀ = 2.39 ± 0.10) against α-glucosidase enzyme, while stem (95.36 ± 2.10) determined higher carbonic anhydrase II activity than leaves (116.54 ± 0.86) compared to standards. Furthermore, only stem oil had significant antimicrobial activity against gram positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) having MIC of 12.5 ± 0.2 and fungi (Candida albicans and Candida kruzei) with an equal concentration of 50.0 ± 0.4 mm. The compounds identified in the stem and leaves oils were docked with the active pocket of α-glucosidase enzyme. In conclusion, these EOs might be a natural source for the treatment of breast cancer, antimicrobial, and diabetes-related diseases.