Multidisciplinary Studies of Folk Medicine “Five Thieves’ Oil” (Olejek Pięciu Złodziei) Components

To meet the growing interest in natural antibacterial agents, we evaluated the physicochemical and biological properties of the folk medicine known as “five thieves’ oil” (Polish name: olejek pięciu złodziei). Five thieves’ oil consists of a mixture of five oils: rosemary, lemon, clove, eucalyptus,...

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Published in:Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2021-05, Vol.26 (10), p.2931
Main Authors: Siejak, Przemysław, Smułek, Wojciech, Fathordobady, Farahnaz, Grygier, Anna, Baranowska, Hanna Maria, Rudzińska, Magdalena, Masewicz, Łukasz, Jarzębska, Małgorzata, Nowakowski, Piotr T., Makiej, Aleksandra, Kazemian, Pardis, Drobnik, Paweł, Stachowiak, Barbara, Jarzębski, Maciej, Pratap-Singh, Anubhav
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging
Aging (natural)
Antibacterial activity
Antibacterial agents
Bacteria
Biological properties
Cell membranes
Cinnamaldehyde
Cinnamon
Constituents
Contact angle
essential oils
Eucalyptus
Eugenol
Folk medicine
Gas chromatography
Gram-negative bacteria
Gram-positive bacteria
health education
Medicine
Membrane permeability
Metabolites
Multidisciplinary research
Oils & fats
Permeability
Pseudomonas
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
spectrometry
Surface tension
terpenes
Volatility
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Summary:To meet the growing interest in natural antibacterial agents, we evaluated the physicochemical and biological properties of the folk medicine known as “five thieves’ oil” (Polish name: olejek pięciu złodziei). Five thieves’ oil consists of a mixture of five oils: rosemary, lemon, clove, eucalyptus, and cinnamon. In this study, we performed gas chromatography, FTIR, and UV–vis spectroscopic analysis, as well as L-a-b color tests, contact angle determination, and surface tension determination. To verify its antibacterial activity, the metabolic activity and changes in cell membrane permeability of bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas were studied. As a result, it was found that among the constituent oils, the oils of clove and cinnamon were the least volatile and, at the same time, had the strongest antibacterial activity. However, a mix of all the oils also showed comparable activity, which was even more pronounced for the oils after 4 weeks of aging. This effect can be linked to the high content of terpene derivatives such as eugenol and cinnamaldehyde, which can cause changes in bacterial membrane permeability, affecting cell activity and survival. This study is the first to characterize the constituents of the popular folk medicine five thieves’ oil, confirming and explaining its strong antibacterial activity, thus constituting a significant contribution to contemporary health education.
ISSN:1420-3049
1420-3049
DOI:10.3390/molecules26102931