Investigation of Origanum onites, Sideritis congesta and Satureja cuneifolia essential oils for analgesic activity

Abstract

Essential oils, obtained by Clevenger distillation, of Sideritis congesta P. H. Davis et Hub.Mor., Satureja cuneifolia Ten. and Origanum onites L. collected from two different localities were investigated for their analgesic activity by using the tail-flick method in mice and by comparing with standard analgesic drugs, morphine and fenoprofen. Among the essential oils tested, marked analgesic activity was found to be specific only for Origanum onites.. Surprisingly, the analgesic activity of Origanum oils seems to be dependent on the locality. Findings obtained in the present study strongly suggested that the analgesic activity is related to the carvacrol content of essential oils.