South Asian Research Journal of Natural Products 4(3): 1-23, 2021; Article no.SARJNP.67706 Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity of Ferula Species' Essential Oils and Plant Extracts and their Application as the Natural Food Preservatives Milad Daneshniya1,2*, Mohammad Hossein Maleki1,2 , Moein Ali Mohammadi1,2, Kimia Ahangarian1, Vahid Jalali Kondeskalaei1 and Hannaneh Alavi1 1Department of Food Science and Engineering, Faculty of Industrial and Mechanical Engineering, Qazvin Islamic Azad University, Nokhbegan Blvd., PO Box 34185-1416, Qazvin, Iran. 2Young Researchers and Elite Club, Qazvin Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qazvin, Iran. Authors’ contributions This work was carried out in collaboration among all authors. Author MD designed the study, performed the statistical analysis, wrote the protocol and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. Authors MHM, MAM and VJK managed the analyses of the study. Authors KA and HA managed the literature searches. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Article Information Editor(s): (1) Prof. Mohamed Fawzy Ramadan Hassanien, Zagazig University, Egypt. Reviewers: (1) Hiba Riyadh Al-Abodi, University of Al-Qadisiyah, Iraq. (2) Hong Kan, Jilin Agricultural University, China. Complete Peer review History: http://www.sdiarticle4.com/review-history/67706 Received 14 February 2021 Accepted 17 April 2021 Review Article Published 26 April 2021 ABSTRACT Ferula is a genus of perennial herbs in the Apiaceae family. Members of this genus are found mainly in the Mediterranean region and Central Asia, and they have a long history of utilization in traditional medicine for a variety of diseases. The species of this plant have been used for the ole- gum resin, plant extracts, and essential oils. Ferula species typically have a heavy fragrance due to the presence of essential oils or oleoresins in them. This review aimed to investigate the antibacterial, anti-fungal, and antioxidant activity of essential oils and plant extracts of ferula species and their potential to be used as natural food preservatives. Potential antioxidant and antimicrobial activity due to the specific chemical compounds have approved that the essential oils and extracts of different species of this plant can be utilized as natural food preservatives. Although an array of studies have approved these activities, there are still some vague aspects of their application for the extension of different food products' shelf life and replacement for synthetic (artificial) preservatives. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ *Corresponding author: Email: [email protected]; Daneshniya et al.; SARJNP, 4(3): 1-23, 2021; Article no.SARJNP.67706 Keywords: Antioxidant; antimicrobial; essential oil; extract; ferula; preservative. 1. INTRODUCTION The ferula plants, on the whole, have an upright perennial plant up to 3 m long, with deeply Given current market expectations, food product dissected leaves, a fleshy taproot, and protection with nutritional content and sensory inconspicuous yellow flowers borne in compound qualities is a primary industrial goal. Besides, the umbels. The plant has a perennial fusiform root, food industry's ever-increasing competitiveness either simple like parsnip, with a coarse, hairy had made cost-cutting inevitable [1]. Follow by summit. The bark is wrinkled and black with large these trends, due to the globalized nature of the quantities of dense alliaceous juice. The leaves, food industry and the remote delivery of goods in where such lobes are oblong and obtuse, are recent years, research and development have shiny. In number, they are few and appear in focused on stable, advanced innovations that autumn. The stem is solid, smooth, herbaceous, extend the shelf-life of a food product while and clothed with membranous sheaths. The maintaining its fresh quality [2]. Studies have fruits, with vittae, are thin, flat, foliaceous, and been looking for antimicrobials and antioxidants reddish-brown [24-26]. to replace synthetic ones, with natural substances implying their importance as Derived plant extracts and essential oils from historically accepted therapeutic agents [3]. various parts of the plant are the two sources of Antioxidants, which may extend food shelf life, compounds with biological activities in ferula. must be used in foods to inhibit the activity of Asafoetida (Ferula asafoetida) is an oleogum free radicals. Currently, synthetic antioxidants resin extracted from the ferula plant affiliated with are becoming less popular due to their adverse the Umbelliferae family. Asafoetida derives from health effects, while natural antioxidants are the Persian aza, for mastic or resin, and foetidus, becoming more widespread [4]. While the for stinking, from the Latin. Asafoetida or similar efficacy of natural antioxidants and antimicrobial oleo gum resins are obtained from F. assa- compounds applied to food products is a cause foetida, F. foetida, and F. narthex; gum of concern, research on the use of herbal galbanum from F. galbaniflua (F. gummosa) and extracts and essential oils in the stabilization of F .rubicaulis [24,25]. Ancient documents note food products such as edible oils have been that this substance "stink finger" was brought conducted, with promising results in the majority west in 4 B.C. by Alexander. It was known as of experiments [5-11]. There are over 1340 "the food of the Gods" to the early Persians and plants with established antimicrobial activities to as Persian sylphium to the Romans. The date and more than 30,000 plant-isolated Europeans likened their fragrance to truffles and antimicrobial compounds. Ferula species have named asafetida, the dung of the devil [24]. It been classified as a rich source of antimicrobial was used as a flavor in ancient Rome and has compounds [12-20]. These species produce been used for centuries in Indian cuisine. alkaloids, flavonoids, isoflavonoids, tannins, Asafoetida was used as a condiment and as a coumarins, glucosides, terpenes, and phenolic drug in ancient India and Iran. Even currently, it substances that are secondary metabolites. is a common ingredient in Indian cuisine, most These chemicals with antimicrobial properties likely because its fragrance recalls the scent of have practical food safety applications, avoiding garlic and onion, two sprouting vegetables, as bacteria and fungi infections [21,22]. well as meat [24,28]. Asafoetida has a strong odor that is tenacious and sulfurous. There are more than 150 species of ferula, which Traditionally, asafoetida is used to treat multiple are primarily distributed in the Mediterranean illnesses such as whooping cough, asthma, region and Central Asia. This species belongs to ulcer, epilepsy, stomach pain, flatulence, the Apiaceae family, which is made up of 275 bronchitis, bowel parasites, antispasmodic genera and 2850 species. Many functional illness, impaired digestion, and influenza [29-32]. compounds were isolated from ferula, including Several actions have also been shown sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpene coumarins, and throughout recent pharmacological and biological sulfur-containing compounds. Research findings trials, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiviral, of more than 70 species have shown that the anti-fungal, chemopreventive, anti-diabetic, anti- principal components of this species are carcinogenesis, antispasmodic, and hypotensive, germacranes, humulanes, carotanes, relaxant, neuroprotective and molluscicidal himachalanes, and guaiaanes [2,12,23]. effects of asafoetida [33-43]. 2 Daneshniya et al.; SARJNP, 4(3): 1-23, 2021; Article no.SARJNP.67706 Fig. 1. Two ferula species [27] Herbal extractions and essential oils have been websites, as well as prominent conferences and used for pharmacological purposes such as congresses. antibacterial, anti-fungal, antiviral, antiparasitic, insecticidal, and antispasmodic throughout 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION history. Currently, they are bing used in the pharmaceutical, sanitary, cosmetic, agricultural, 3.1 Chemical Composition and Biological and food industries [5]. Essential oils are a type Activities of liquid that is subtle, highly concentrated, aromatic, and volatile. This natural oils are Essential oils from aromatic and medicinal plants mixtures of complex and volatile compounds have shown biological activity and have attracted produced as secondary metabolites by aromatic particular consideration [54]. The direct addition plants [44]. Essential oils are valuable not only of aromatic plant essential oils and extracts to for their natural protective function for host plants food products has been shown to have an but also because they possess properties that antioxidant or antimicrobial impact [55]. Essential are several times more potent than dried herbs. oils (also known as volatile oils) are aromatic oily Antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiviral, and anti- liquids derived from plant materials (leaves, fungal properties, as well as certain specific buds, fruits, flowers, herbs, twigs, bark, wood, therapeutic effects, render essential oils a roots, and seeds). The most popular technique precious factor [45-53]. for commercially extracting essential oils is steam or hydro-distillation, which was first 2. METHODOLOGY introduced in the Middle Ages. Essential oils are complex natural mixtures containing anything This review has been conducted to investigate from 20 to 60 different components in differing the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of concentrations.