Lavandula angustifolia “sevtopolis” essential oil: The chemical composition and antimicrobial properties

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate: i) the chemical composition and ii) the antimicrobial properties of the essential oil isolated from Lavandula angustifolia “Sevtopolis” cultivated in western Romania. The essential oil, obtained by steam distillation, was evaluated by GC/MS. The inhibitory effects of Lavandula angustifolia “Sevtopolis” essential oil were tested using the Kirby-Bauer agar disc diffusion method against five common food-related bacteria: Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 13882) and Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29212). The Lavandula angustifolia “Sevtopolis” essential oil extraction yield was 1.83% (v/w). The major components were linalyl acetate (40.71%), linalool (22.48%), caryophyllene (8.91%) and lavandulyl acetate (7.52%). The results showed that Lavandula angustifolia “Sevtopolis” essential oil has antimicrobial activity against all the bacterial strains tested excepting Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus were the most susceptible bacterial strains to the action of the essential oil.