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ABSTRACT
The aim of this work was to evaluate the antibacterial and antifungal activity of essential oils obtained from medicinal plants of the Argentine Republic. The antimicrobial activity of the essential oils of 14 plants collected from different zones was analyzed. The microorganisms used were Staphylococcus aureus., Staphylococcus epidermidis., Bacillus cereus., Micrococcus luteus., Enterococcus faecalis., Escherichia coli., Klebsiella. sp., Proteus mirabilis., Pseudomonas aeruginosa., and the yeast Candida albicans.. The disk diffusion method was performed to test antimicrobial activity. B. cereus. and S. aureus. were inhibited by most of the essential oils. Aloysia triphylla., Psila spartoides., and Anemia tomentosa. were the most effective compounds against B. cereus., while A. triphylla. and Baccharis flabellata. were effective against S. aureus.. None of the oils inhibited P. aeruginosa.. B. flabellata. and Pectis odorata. were active only against Gram-positive bacteria. A. triphylla. and P. spartoides. inhibited all tested microorganism, and the remaining essential oils showed variable activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of A. triphylla. and P. spartoides. essential oils were determined using the disk diffusion method. The lowest MICs were against S. aureus. (1/16), B. cereus. (1/16), S. epidermidis. (1/8), and C. albicans. (1/32) for A. triphylla.. The lowest MICs were against S. aureus. (1/32), B. cereus. (1/32), P. mirabilis. (1/32), and C. albicans. (1/64) with P. spartoides.. The results showed that B. cereus. and S. aureus. were the most sensitive microorganisms, and P. aeruginosa. was the most resistant microorganism. This study may contribute to improve ethnobotanical knowledge and would help to discover substances with potential therapeutical uses, as food preservants or as food-borne pathogen inhibitors.