Exploring the potential of essential oil from Oxalis latifolia leaves against the bacterial skin disease impetigo by in vitro and in silico approaches

• O. latifolia essential oil is reported for the first time for anti-impetigo activity. • GC–MS profiling identified 31 bioactive constituents with therapeutic relevance. • Essential oil showed strong antibacterial action against major impetigo pathogens. • Lead compounds exhibited favorable ADME/T, high absorption & noncarcinogenicity. • Phenol, 2,4-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl)-, phosphite (3:1) showed highest multi-target affinity. This study investigated the pharmacological potential of the hydrodistilled essential oil (EOs) of Oxalis latifolia Kunth. against the bacterial skin disease impetigo. Quantitative phytochemical analysis revealed meaningful levels of secondary metabolites, including total phenolics (78.95 ± 4.01 GAE mg/100 mg), flavonoids (43.67 ± 3.01 QE mg/100 mg), and tannins (12.08 ± 2.81 GAE mg/100 mg). Strong antioxidant activity was observed in the DPPH • assay (78.12 ± 4.34%), ABTS •+ radical scavenging activity (82.35 ± 7.91 µM TE/g), and FRAP assay (54.42 ± 4.19 mM Fe(II)/mg). The EOs exhibited potent anti-inflammatory effects across hypotonic hemolysis (74.25 ± 3.12%), heat-induced hemolysis (63.76 ± 4.08%), egg albumin denaturation (72.31 ± 5.36%), and BSA denaturation assays (79.24 ± 6.14%). The GC–MS analysis identified 31 bioactive compounds, dominated by Phenol, 2,4-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl)- phosphite (3:1) (23.28% peak area), alongside dioxolane derivatives, isopropyl myristate, and branched alkanes. The antibacterial assays showed strong inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus (19.66 ± 0.25 mm), Streptococcus pyogenes (19.24 ± 0.50 mm), Staphylococcus epidermidis (22.44 ± 0.52 mm), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (20.60 ± 0.35 mm). ADME/T analysis of 31 compounds indicated high gastrointestinal (GI) absorption, zero Lipinski violations, noncarcinogenicity, and weak hERG toxicity. Molecular docking revealed high binding affinities of major phytochemicals toward impetigo-associated virulence proteins, with Phenol, 2,4-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl)-, phosphite (3:1) showing the strongest interactions (-8.9 to -10.2 kcal/mol). These findings highlight the therapeutic potential of O. latifolia EOs as a natural anti-impetigo agent.