In vitro cytotoxic and antimicrobial activity of essential oil from Satureja sahendica

Abstract

Several Satureja species are used in traditional medicine due to recognized therapeutic properties, namely antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities. In order to explore the potential for commercial purposes and industrial utilization of its essentiail oil, scientific studies addressing the chemical composition, the action mechanism and the toxicological safety are needed. The purpose of the present work was to determine the cytotoxic activity of the essential oil of S. sahendica Bornm. (Lamiaceae) on four human cancer cell lines as well as its inhibitory effects in vitro against 11 pathogenic bacteria and fungi. The essential oil was isolated by hydrodistillation and analyzed by the combination of capillary GC-FID and GC-MS. Thymol (40%), γ-terpinene (28%), and ρ-cymene (22%) were the main components of the essential oil. Antimicrobial activity of the essential oil according to the disk diffusion method and minimum inhibitory concentration value and the in vitro toxicological study based on the MTT cytotoxicity assay was studied. Essential oil significantly reduced cell viability of MCF7, Vero, SW480 and JET 3 cells in a dose-dependent manner with IC₅₀ value 15.6, 15.6, 125, and 250 µg mL⁻¹, respectively. Also, the essential oil exhibited considerable antimicrobial activity on tested bacteria and fungi. In conclusion, essential oil of S. sahendica and its major constitutes may be of interest in antibacterial and anticancer applications.

Keywords:

• Satureja
• MTT assay
• GC-MS
• thymol

Acknowledgments

International Center for Science, High Technology & Environmental Sciences, Kerman, Iran, is acknowledged for financial support of this work [Grant number 1/2955].