The essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation of the fruits of
Myristica fragrans
was
analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Twenty eight compounds were identified representing 95.9% of the oil. The
major constituents of the oil were α-pinene (6.4%), Sabinene (37.7%), α-pinene (7.3%), myrcene
(3.5%),Limonene (4.7%),Terpine-4-ol (5.8%), safrole (3.4%) and myristicin (6.8%).The essential oil and its
major constituents were evaluated at different dilution against
Microcerotermes beesoni
, test termite. The LC50
value of fruit essential oil is 28.6 mg/g. Furthermore, exposure to myristicin caused 100% mortality at a dosage
of 5 mg/g after 14d.
