Published in Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 1
Written by Paul-Alexandru POPESCU, Wahauwouélé Hermann COULIBALY, Yabo Majoie Géroxie TOHOYESSOU, Elisabeta Elena POPA, Mihaela GEICU-CRISTEA, Mihaela Cristina DRĂGHICI, Amalia Carmen MITELUȚ, Mona Elena POPA
The present research paper aims to evaluate the antifungal and antibacterial activity of two essential oils, cinnamon essential oil (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) and clove essential oil (Eugenia caryophyllata) on three fungal strains (Aspergillus brasiliensis, Botrytis cinerea, Penicillium expansum) and one bacteria strain (Bacillus subtilis). The studied essential oils (EOs) are used in the food industry as bioactive compounds and are known to have antimicrobial activity on the growth of some bacteria strains as well as several fungal strains. The trend worldwide is to develop novel and healthy methods used to prologue the shelf-life of food products that are naturally spoiled by different types of microorganismsn thus EOs are a perfect solution in potentially solving this problem. The major problem that occurs with the use of EOs as natural preservatives used to prolong the shelf life of different food products is that in high concentrations they affect the sensory qualities. Also, the EOs have several limitations like variability in efficacy, stability issues, low water solubility and regulatory challenges. The results showed that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranged between 10µl and 50µl. The results suggest that both EOs could be used as potential natural alternatives that may lead to the growth inhibition of some microorganism’s strains, thus prolonging the shelf life of food.
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