Abstract
Essential oils are secondary plant metabolites and have many therapeutic properties. The aim of our study is to determine the antibacterial effect of the essential oils of two plants cultivated in a semi-arid region located in the Northeast of Algeria (Tebessa), Eucalyptus camaldulensis (Myrtaceae) and Artemisia herba alba (Asteraceae). The yield of essential oils of the two plants were 1.45 ± 0.026 and 1.21 ± 0.061 g/100 g of the dry matter of the aerial part respectively. The test of the antibacterial effect is based on the diffusion method on solid medium (sensitivity), this method allows us to determine the susceptibility or resistance of an organism vis-à-vis the sample studied. Our study reveals that E. camaldulensis essential oil had very strong activity on all bacterial strains tested, except on Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterococcus faecalis for which there was no inhibitory effect. However, A. herba alba essential oil had very strong activity on all bacterial strains tested except on Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The MIC of Artemisia essential oil ranged between 0.08 and 1.57 µL/mL, with the lowest activity for S. aureus and P. mirabilis (1.57 µL/mL) and the highest activity was observed against E. feacalis, E. coli, and K. pneumonia (0.09 µL/mL). The MIC of the second plant EO ranged between 0.08 and 0.36 µL/mL, with the lowest activity for P. mirabilis (0.36 µL/mL) and the highest one was observed against S. saprophyticus and E. coli (0.08 µL/mL). Statistical analysis shows that the two plants have the same efficacy against S. saprophyticus while E. faecalis, K. pneumoniae and P. mirabilis species are affected more by the essential oil of A. herba alba. While, E. camaldulensis has a higher efficiency than that of A. herba alba on the species: S. aureus and E. coli. Therefore, the essential oils of E. camaldulensis and A. herba alba suggests avenues for further non clinical and clinical studies.
Highlights
IntroductionHumankind has used various plants found in its environment, to treat and cure all kinds of diseases (Ghulam et al, 2017)
For thousands of years, humankind has used various plants found in its environment, to treat and cure all kinds of diseases (Ghulam et al, 2017)
In a second series of experiments, we investigated under laboratory conditions the efficacy of essential oils of the two plants against the selected Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria Entrococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, S. aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis, by the aromatogram test and determination of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC)
Summary
Humankind has used various plants found in its environment, to treat and cure all kinds of diseases (Ghulam et al, 2017). Medicinal plants are a numerically large group of economically important plants (Pérez-Nicolas et al, 2017) They offer an alternative to drugs and contain active components derived from the secondary metabolites produced from the metabolism of nutrients that are used by human beings in their therapeutic arsenal (Tesche & Metternich, 2008; Al-Jumaili et al, 2018). The use of essential oils in medicine has never been abandoned despite the discovery of organic synthesis processes and the birth of the pharmaceutical industry (Baptista-Silva et al, 2020). They are considered as a real reservoir of basic molecules that are irreplaceable (Ouraïni et al, 2007). Considerable interest has been generated in essential oils extracted from aromatic plants and endowed with antimicrobial activity against pathogenic microorganisms (Alzoreky & Nakahara, 2003; Traore et al, 2013)
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