Chemical Profiling, Antioxidant, and Antibacterial Potentials of Zingiber officinale var. Elephant Ginger and Cinnamomum verum Essential Oils Incorporated into Chitosan-Velvet Bean Edible Film
Sri Retno Dwi Ariani1*, Imelia Putri Salsabila1, Saskia Salsabila Angeli1, Endang Susilowati1, Widiastuti Agustina Eko Setyowati1, & Ifah Munifah2

1Chemistry Education Study Program, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta, Central Java 57126, Indonesia
2Research Center for Marine and Land Bioindustry, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Lombok 83352, Indonesia

Abstract

The aims of this study were to identify the chemical components of Zingiber officinale var. elephant ginger essential oil (ZEO) and Cinnamomum verum essential oil (CEO) using GC-MS method, to evaluate their antioxidant activity through DPPH assays, to assess their antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 and Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and to examine their combination as antioxidant and antibacterial bioadditives in a chitosan-velvet bean edible film (CVF). GC-MS analysis identified citronellyl acetate (14.74%) as the predominant compound in ZEO and cinnamaldehyde (65.25%) in CEO. CEO exhibited significantly stronger antioxidant activity (IC50 = 35.57 ppm) compared to ZEO (IC50 = 69.31 ppm). In terms of antibacterial activity, CEO produced larger inhibition zones against S. aureus ATCC 25923 (46.27 mm) and E. coli ATCC 25922 (30.37 mm), both classified as very strong, whereas ZEO exhibited only limited inhibition at 12.84 mm and 12.65 mm, respectively, corresponding to moderate activity. The most effective combination was obtained with the formulation containing 1.0% ZEO + 3.0% CEO, which significantly enhanced antioxidant activity (from 77.95 ppm to 28.39 ppm, shifting from strong to very strong). This formulation also substantially improved antibacterial performance, with inhibition zones increasing from 7.68 mm to 42.50 mm against S. aureus and from 7.38 mm to 34.22 mm against E. coli, corresponding to a shift from weak to very strong activity. Furthermore, the combination improved the film surface, yielding a relatively smooth structure with micropores and small aggregates. Overall, the findings highlighted the strong potential of ZEO and CEO combinations as bioadditives in edible film packaging to enhance antioxidant and antibacterial functions.

Keywords: Antioxidant, Antibacterial, Chitosan-Velvet Bean Edible Film, Cinnamomum verum, Zingiber officinale

Topic: Chemistry and Chemistry Education