Publication: Antimicrobial Potential of Essential Oils from Aromatic Plant Ocimum sp.; A Comparative Biochemical Profiling and In-Silico Analysis
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Date
2022
Journal Title
Agronomy
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
MDPI
Abstract
Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) are a rich source of bioactive compounds that are immensely important due to their potential use in pharmacological and agricultural applications. Here, we have evaluated the antimicrobial activity of essential oils (EOs) from three different species of Ocimum: O. gratissimum (EO1), O. tenuiflorum (EO2), and O. sanctum (EO3). The EOs were screened for antibacterial activity against pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli, Enterobacter cloacae and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The essential oils EO1 and EO3 showed significant growth inhibition of the tested bacteria. Likewise, all EOs exhibited antifungal potential against the broad-spectrum plant fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum that causes white-mould disease in plants. Moreover, the antimicrobial potential of the EOs correlates well with their antioxidant activity determined by DPPH free radical scavenging activity. The biochemical analysis of the EOs employing high-performance thin-layer chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, revealed the presence of distinct phytoconstituents that might be responsible for their differential bioactivity. Furthermore, an in-silico evaluation of the candidate phytoconstituents using molecular docking analysis suggests their potential for antimicrobial applications. Altogether, our results clearly show that EO1 and EO3 possess promising antimicrobial properties, and therefore could be utilized as a potential antimicrobial agent. � 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
Description
Keywords
Antimicrobial, Crop protection, Essential oil, FTIR, GC-MS, HPTLC, Molecular docking, Ocimum sp