Phytochemical Composition and Bioactivities of Essential Oils from Rhizomes of Homalomena pendula and Homalomena cochinchinensis

In this study, we investigated the chemical composition and potential biological properties of essential oils extracted from the rhizomes of two Homalomena species, H. pendula (Blume) Bakh.f. and H. cochinchinensis Engl. Using GC–MS analysis, we found that H. pendula essential oil contains 59 components while H. cochinchinensis essential oil contains 58. Both essential oils were rich in oxygenated monoterpenes, with linalool and terpinen-4-ol being the most prevalent compounds. Additionally, H. cochinchinensis essential oil exhibited moderate anti-inflammatory activity with an IC50 value of 170.81 ± 11.44 µg/mL, whereas H. pendula essential oil showed moderate activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) with an IC50 value of 130.65 ± 1.27 µg/mL. This study is the first to report the chemical composition and biological effects of H. pendula essential oil, as well as the anti-inflammatory effects of H. cochinchinensis essential oil.