This paper aims to evaluate the influence of preparation and extraction methods on the phytochemical profile and microbiological activity of 12 medicinal plants from the west side of Romania. First, the proximate composition (humidity, proteins, lipids, and ash) and elemental composition of the raw material were evaluated. Two levels of plant shredding were used: coarse shredding (CS) and fine grinding of plants to obtain powder (FG), and three extraction methods: conventional solvent extraction (CES), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), and microwave extraction (MWE). The phytochemical profile investigated referred to antioxidant activity (AA), total polyphenol content (TPC), and flavonoid content (TFC), using spectrophotometric methods, and individual polyphenols detected using the LC/MS method. The preparation/extraction method for each medicinal plant was optimized using statistical analysis. The optimized extracts for each medicinal plant were tested to evaluate the antimicrobial potential against 9 standard strains. The results showed that the sample preparation method before extraction (shredding or grinding) influences the content of phytocompounds by increasing them in powder form. The use of green technologies, especially MWE, leads to the highest content of TPC, TFC, and AA. The TPC value ranged between 4.83–19.2 mgGAE/g DM in the samples CS and between 19.00–52.85 mgGAE/g DM in the samples FG. The highest antioxidant value was found in the Origanum vulgare extract, both in the case of the crushed sample (22.66 mM Fe2+/100 g) and the powder sample (81.36 mM Fe2+/100 g), followed by Melissa officinalis, The TFC values varied in the range of 1.02–3.46 mgQE/g DM when CES was used, between 2.36–12.09 mgQE/g DM for UAE, and between 1.22–9.63 mgQE/g DM in the case of the MWE procedure. The antimicrobial activity highlighted the effectiveness of the extracts, especially on the strains of H. influenzae, C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, S. aureus, and S. flexneri. Reduced antimicrobial activity was recorded for the strains of S. pyogenes and P. aeruginosa. The best antimicrobial activity was registered by Thymus serpyllum, with an inhibition rate of 132.93% against E. coli and 78.40% against C. albicans.
The purpose of this study was to analyze the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of some thymus populations collected from five different locations in Western Romania. The chemical compositions of the essential oils (EOs) were studied through GC–MS, and the biological activities were evaluated using the microdilution method. The EO yield ranged between 0.44% and 0.81%. Overall, 60 chemical compounds were identified belonging to three chemotypes: thymol (three populations), geraniol (one population) and carvacrol (one population). Thymus vulgaris L. is distinguished by a high content of thymol, while species of spontaneous flora (Th. odoratissimus and Th. pulegioides) contain, in addition to thymol, appreciable amounts of carvacrol and geraniol. The antimicrobial activity of each the five oils was tested on Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Streptococcus pyogenes (ATCC 19615), Esherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), Shigella flexneri (ATCC 12022), Salmonella typhimurium (ATCC 14028), Haemophilus influenzae type B (ATCC 10211), Candida albicans (ATCC 10231) and Candida parapsilopsis (ATCC 22019). The EOs showed biological activity on Gram-positive/Gram-negative/fungal pathogens, the most sensitive strains proving to be S. pyogenes, S. flexneri, S. typhimurium and C. parapsilopsis with an MIC starting at 2 µL EO/100 µL. The species sensitive to the action of Thymus sp. from culture or spontaneous flora are generally the same, but it should be noted that T. odoratissimus has a positive inhibition rate higher than other investigated EOs, regardless of the administered oil concentration. To date, there is no research work presenting the chemical and antimicrobial profiling of T. odoratissimus and the correlations between the antimicrobial potential and chemical composition of wild and cultivated populations of thyme (Thymus sp.) growing in Western Romania.
Camelina, is relatively a new crop though is known for humanity from ancient times. Camelina draw attention for its oil rich in fatty acids therefore researchers began to focus on it in a variety of studies from the growing practices to animal feed and chemical composition of seed and oil and their uses.This experiment was conducted to determine the amino acids content in the groats of three camelina varieties (Mădălina, created by BIOTEHGEN in collaboration with the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Sciences of Bucharest, Calena, with Austrian origins and a local population cultivated by Banat University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara). The determination of amino acid was made in the research platform of Banat University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara.The research material that was used was the resulting groats after Soxhlet oil extraction. Furthermore, the results were compared between them and between other results obtained by researchers in an attempt to demonstrate the versatility, adaptability and constancy of this crop of the future named Camelina.
Medicinal plants are highly investigated due to their multiple effects in human health. In the last two decades, plants belonging to Lamiaceae family have emerged as an important source of compounds with beneficial effects in various pathologies. Many species of the Lamiaceae family have a high volatile oil content which can be found in different parts of the plant. Some representative examples include Lavandula spp. Salvia spp. and Mentha spp. which are species with essential oils studied for antioxidant, antimicrobial and antitumor effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of six essential oils at skin level before and after encapsulation in hydroxypropyl-gamma-cyclodextrins. Results indicated that regardless of the tested form, the samples did not display an irritating or toxic effect at skin level, suggesting that the essential oils can be used in different formulations for topical application.
Camelina (Camelina sativa L. Crantz) or false flax is an oil crop from the Brassicaceae family. Camelina oil has multiple uses, of which the best known is biofuel production. A motivation for this study was the oil’s high content of omega-3, omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids, which are known to have an antimicrobial effect. Campylobacter is the most common bacterial cause of human foodborne gastroenteritis in the world. We tested the potential antimicrobial effect of free fatty acids (FFA) from camelina oil against lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and Campylobacter. The in vitro results show that the free fatty acids from camelina oil reduces levels of Campylobacter spp. and increases the levels of LAB showing a potential use of camelina oil as a natural antimicrobial.
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