Characterization of aromatic compounds and antimicrobial properties of four spice essential oils from family Lamiaceae

Abstract

Introduction. Representatives of the Lamiaceae family are widely used in the food industry as they are characterized by a high content of aromatic compounds. Materials and methods. It was evaluated the chemical composition and antibacterial activity of essential oils of garden thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), spearmint (Mentha spicata L.), and sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.). Results and discussion. The percentage ratio of volatile components obtained by GC-MS analysis of essential oil from garden thyme contains: thymol (37.90%) and γ-terpinene (19.44%). It has been determined eucalyptol (19.89%) and camphor (16.86%) in the essential oil of rosemary and carvone (50.23%) and limonene (13.90%) in spearmint oil, respectively. The differences in the quantitative and qualitative composition of essential oils and their aromatic components in relation to the previous researches may be probably due to different environmental and genetic factors, different chemotypes and the nutritional status of the plants as well as other factors that can influence the oil composition. Escherichia coli was the most susceptible bacterium strain. The essential oils of spearmint and rosemary possessed the most pronounced antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli (with inhibition zone: 32.00 mm and 30.00 mm). Conclusions. The results obtained provide a basis for a thorough examination of the chemical composition and antimicrobial properties of various representatives of Lamiaceae family with a view to a wide usage in food technology.