In vitro and in situ Antibacterial Potential of Citrus aurantifolia

Abstract

Research on plant sources and screening of plant materials for new compounds has fostered increased interest in replacing synthetic antibacterial agents with natural ones. Spices and their essential oils have had varying degrees of antibacterial activity since antiquity. The need to find new antimicrobials has arisen from the emergence of bacterial resistance to currently marketed antimicrobial compounds. Thus, the aim of this study was to characterize the antibacterial properties of Citrus aurantifolia essential oil against these plant pathogenic bacteria: Bacillus subtilis CCM 2217, Pseudomonas putida CCM 7156, Xanthomonas arboricola CCM 1441, Pectobacterium carotovorum CCM 1008 and Priestia (Bacillus) megaterium CCM 2007. In this experiment, we measured antibacterial activity using two different methods. The antibacterial activity of the investigated bacterial strains was compared and their antibiotic resistance was evaluated using the disc diffusion method under in vitro conditions. The species strategy used on the surface of carrots was the antimicrobial activity under in situ conditions. The essential oil of C. aurantifolia was found to have the strongest antibacterial effect against B. subtilis in vitro. In addition, in situ monitoring of antibacterial activity was carried out and a concentration of 6.25-500 µg/L gave the best results against X. arboricola.

Keywords

• citrus aurantifolia
• in situ
• disk diffusion
• antimicrobial activity