Antibacterial Effects and Mode of Action of Selected Essential Oils Components against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2015

Authors

Manuel Simões (Author) FEUP; Anabela Borges (Author) FEUP; Julio Cesar Lopez-Romero (Author) Other; Humberto González-Ríos (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Vol. 2015

Pages: 1-9

ISSN: 1741-427X

Publisher: Hindawi

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 37 Citations

ISI Web of Science

Scopus - 121 Citations

Scientific classification

CORDIS: Health sciences

FOS: Medical and Health sciences

Associated Projects

Fitodesinfetantes - Desinfeção de bactérias planctónicas e biofilmes em ambientes hospitalares com produtos fitoquímicos

LEPAE/CEFT - RL2 - (Bio) Chemical Engineering: Multi-Scale Approaches for Sustainable Environment and Health

NOVOMAR - Consolidação do Centro Multipolar de Valorização de Recursos Marinhos visando novos usos do mar

LEPABE - Laboratório de Engenharia de Processos, Ambiente, Biotecnologia e Energia

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00G-DFP

DOI: 10.1155/2015/795435

Abstract (EN): Bacterial resistance has been increasingly reported worldwide and is one of the major causes of failure in the treatment of infectious diseases. Natural-based products, including plant secondary metabolites (phytochemicals), may be used to surpass or reduce this problem. The objective of this study was to determine the antibacterial effect and mode of action of selected essential oils (EOs) components: carveol, carvone, citronellol, and citronellal, against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were assessed for the selected EOs components. Moreover, physicochemical bacterial surface characterization, bacterial surface charge, membrane integrity, and K+ leakage assays were carried out to investigate the antimicrobial mode of action of EOs components. Citronellol was the most effective molecule against both pathogens, followed by citronellal, carveol, and carvone. Changes in the hydrophobicity, surface charge, and membrane integrity with the subsequent K+ leakage from E. coli and S. aureus were observed after exposure to EOs. This study demonstrates that the selected EOs have significant antimicrobial activity against the bacteria tested, acting on the cell surface and causing the disruption of the bacterial membrane. Moreover, these molecules are interesting alternatives to conventional antimicrobials for the control of microbial infections.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 9