Eugenol (an essential oil of clove) acts as an antibacterial agent against Salmonella typhi by disrupting the cellular membrane

• Published in: Journal of ethnopharmacology 2010-07, Vol.130 (1), p.107-115
• Main Authors: Devi, K. Pandima, Nisha, S. Arif, Sakthivel, R., Pandian, S. Karutha
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: animal pathogenic bacteria; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; antibacterial properties; Antimicrobial activity; application rate; atomic force microscopy; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Membrane - drug effects; cell membranes; chemoattractants; chemotaxis; cytoplasm; Cytoplasmic membrane; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; Eugenol; Eugenol - pharmacology; Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy; General pharmacology; in vitro studies; intracellular materials; Mechanism; mechanism of action; Medical sciences; Membrane disruption; Membrane permeability; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Microscopy, Atomic Force; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; minimum bactericidal concentration; minimum inhibitory concentration; Pharmacognosy. Homeopathy. Health food; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis; Salmonella typhi; Salmonella typhi - drug effects; scanning electron microscopy; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; viability
• ISSN: 0378-8741; 1872-7573
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2010.04.025

To evaluate the antibacterial activity of eugenol and its mechanism of bactericidal action against Salmonella typhi. The antibacterial activity was checked by disc-diffusion method, MIC, MBC, time course assay and pH sensitivity assay. The chemo-attractant property of eugenol was verified by chemotaxis assay. The mode of action of eugenol was determined by crystal violet assay, measurement of release of 260 nm absorbing material, SDS-PAGE, FT-IR spectroscopy, AFM and SEM. Treatment with eugenol at their MIC (0.0125%) and MBC (0.025%) reduced the viability and resulted in complete inhibition of the organism. Eugenol inactivated Salmonella typhi within 60 min exposure. The chemo-attractant property of eugenol combined with the observed high antibacterial activity at alkaline pH favors the fact that the compound can work more efficiently when given in vivo. Eugenol increased the permeability of the membrane, as evidenced by crystal violet assay. The measurement of release of 260 nm absorbing intracellular materials, SDS-PAGE, SEM and AFM analysis confirmed the disruptive action of eugenol on cytoplasmic membrane. The deformation of macromolecules in the membrane, upon treatment with eugenol was verified by FT-IR spectroscopy. The results suggest that the antibacterial activity of eugenol against Salmonella typhi is due to the interaction of eugenol on bacterial cell membrane.