ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF MENTHA PULEGIUM ESSENTIAL OIL AGAINST AVIAN ISOLATED ESBL PRODUCING BACTERIA AND ITS SYNERGISTIC POTENTIAL WITH ANTIBIOTICS

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial effect of Algerian Mentha pulegium essential oil against extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBL) producing bacteria isolated from avian livestock. The synergistic interactions between conventional antibiotics and Mentha pulegium essential oil were assessed.Methods: Essential oil composition was determined by gas chromatograph-flame ionization detector (GC/FID), gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC/MS) analysis.Antibacterial activity of Mentha pulegium essential oil against ESBL producing bacteria was investigated by disc diffusion assay. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of essential oil and it synergistic interaction with conventional antibiotics were determined by micro-broth dilution method and checkerboard test, respectively.Results: The results indicate that Mentha pulegium essential oil with a high amount of pulegone (88.78%) had high inhibitory activity against the tested strains and particularly displays a satisfactory action against the studied ESBL producing bacteria from animal origin, with a diameter ranging from 13 to 26 mm. Out of 51 combinations tested between essential oil and antibiotics 60.78 % showed total synergy, 13.72 % had presented a partial synergy. The best antibacterial activities were obtained with the combination of Mentha pulegium essential oil and cefazolin, cefotaxime and gentamycin.Conclusion: This study allowed concluding that Mentha pulegium essential oil showed not only satisfactory antibacterial properties, but also acts synergistically combined with conventional antibiotics, which make it a promising alternative to antimicrobial drugs; beside that, it might reduce the minimum effective dose of the drugs which minimizes their possible side effects.