Introduction. Juniper berries have been used in ancient in folk medicine for treatment infections, as a spice for meat, and preparation of gin and raki. Juniper (Juniperus communis L.) belongs to the Cupressaceae family. It is an evergreen tree or shrub and achieve from 2 to 10 m high. Its berries produced essential oil, which contain α-pinene, camphene, limonene, cadinene, terpinen-4-ol, myrcene, β-pinene, sabinene, flavonoids, resins, organic acids, and tannins. The oil is used for treatment various diseases. It demonstrate antimicrobial properties. Aim. The aim of the study was to investigate the susceptibility of anaerobic bacteria of oral cavity to juniper oil. Material and methods. The 56 of anaerobic bacteria isolated from patients, in it Gram-negative rods (31 strains), Gram-positive cocci (13) Gram-positive rods (12) and 8 reference strains were tested. Investigation was carried out using the plate dilution technique in Brucella agar supplemented with 5% defibrynated sheep blood, menadione and hemin. Inoculum containing 106 CFU per spot was seeded with Steers replicator upon the agar with oil or without the oil (strains growth control). Concentration of dated oil were: 2,0, 5,0, 7,5, 10,0, 15,0 and 20,0 mg/ml. The plate was incubated in anaerobic condition in anaerobic jar in 37°C for 48 hrs. The MIC was interpreted as the lowest concentration of juniper oil inhibiting the growth of tested bacteria. Results and discussion. The results of the experiments indicated, that rods from Gram-negative anaerobes, the strains belonging to the genera of Prevotella and Porphyromonas, were the most susceptible to essential oil. The MIC’s for the strains be within from 5,0 to 10,0 mg/ml. The lowest sensitive were the rods from genera Bacteroides, Parabacteroides and Tannerella (MIC > 20,0 mg/ml). From among Gram-positive cocci the most sensitive to oil were the strains from genus Finegoldia magna. The oil was active towards half of the strains in concentration < 2,5 mg/ml. The tested Gram-positive rods were the less sensitive (MIC 5,0-> 20,0 mg/ml). From this group, the strains Actinomyces viscosus demonstrated the sensitivity on 5,0 to 7,5 mg/ml. The most resistance were the rods Actinomyces odontolyticus and Propionibacterium granulosum (MIC > 20,0 mg/ml). Conclusions. The lowest susceptible to juniper oil from Gram-negative bacteria were genus of Bacteroides, Parabacteroides and Tannerella. The oil was the most active against strains of Prevotella and Porphyromonas. The cocci were the more susceptible than Gram-positive rods. The Gram-positive anaerobes showed high susceptibility to juniperus oil than Gram-negative rods.
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