Abstract
The problem of antibiotic resistance among pathogens encourages searching for novel active molecules. The aim of the research was to assay the anti-quorum sensing (anti-QS) and antibiofilm potential of Melaleuca alternifolia essential oil and its main constituent, terpinen-4-ol, to prevent the infections due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains as an alternate to antibiotics. The tea tree oil (TTO) was evaluated for its potential in inhibiting QS-dependent phenomena such as violacein production in Chromobacterium violaceum, swarming motility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, and biofilm formation in MRSA strains on glass. The results showed that terpinen-4-ol was able to inhibit MRSA strain biofilm formation on the glass strips by 73.70%. TTO inhibited the violacein production at a mean inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of 0.048 mg/mL by 69.3%. At 100 µg/mL TTO and terpinen-4-ol exhibited inhibition in swarming motility of PAO1 by 33.33% and 25%, respectively. TTO revealed anti-QS and anti-biofilm activities at very low concentrations, but it could be further investigated for new molecules useful for the treatment of MRSA infections.
Highlights
In the last years, the bacteria resistance to several antibiotics has increased in all parts of the world [1,2]
tea tree oil (TTO) was rich in terpinen-4-ol (40.4%), γ-terpinene (19.5%), and α-terpinene (7.7%)
Brophy and collaborators [17] used GC and GC/MS to analyze more than 800 TTO samples, with a great prevalence of terpinen-4-ol, γ-terpinene and α-terpinene
Summary
The bacteria resistance to several antibiotics has increased in all parts of the world [1,2]. It is highly required to discover new different therapies to treat or decrease cases of bacterial infections. Due to the safety profile of some natural products, the interest in antimicrobials derived from plants has enhanced [3]. Plants have been used for centuries in popular medicine to cure infections and, nowadays, they continue to have an important role in the discovery of novel compounds [4]. Within secondary metabolites derived from plants, essential oils (EOs) contain bioactive components with chemical and structural differences and functions. For this motive, essential oils constitute a distinctive group of possible novel antimicrobial agents that have attracted particular interest [5]
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