Chemical Profiling and Bioactivity Assessment of Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don. Essential Oil: Exploring Pure Compounds and Synergistic Combinations

Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don., immortelle, is a plant species used in ethnomedicine and the food industry as a spice added to food, beverages, and bakery products. It has been shown to possess various biological activities, such as antioxidant and antibacterial activity, making it useful as a natural preservative. We investigated the phytochemical profile and biological activity of H. italicum essential oils from wild-grown plant material collected from natural habitats in the Republic of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Using high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (SEM), a visual investigation of plant organs (stem, leaf, and flower) was performed, confirming the presence of essential oil reservoirs on the surface of all examined plant organs. Essential oils were isolated by hydrodistillation in the Clevenger apparatus. The chemical composition of the essential oils was determined using the GC-MS analytical technique. Cytotoxic activity tests were performed in vitro on three cell lines: skin (fibroblast), lung, and breast cancer. Using statistical tools, the synergistic and selective effects of H. italicum essential oil on healthy and tumor cells were correlated to chemical composition and cytotoxic activity. The synergistic and antagonistic effects of H. italicum essential oil’s individual components were simulated by testing pure compounds and their mixture of cytotoxic activity on fibroblasts and breast cancer cells. The results confirm that essential oil’s biological activity is much greater than the sum of the effects of its components. The present data are novel contributions to the body of knowledge on the biological activity of this species used in the food industry.