| International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences |
| ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 2 Number 6(2013) pp. 261-272 |
| Antifungal Activity of Volatiles from Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita) Oils Against Some Respiratory Pathogenic Species of Aspergillus |
| Sulaiman Ali Al Yousef |
| Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Science, University of Dammam, P.O. Box 1683 Hafr Al Batin - 31991 -Saudi Arabia. *Corresponding author e-mail: saalyousef@ud.edu.sa |
| A B S T R A C T |
| Recently, the use of essential oils against fungal infection has gained highly importance because of acquired resistance against a large number of drugs. The aim of study was testing the biological activity of essential oil vapors against some Aspergillus spp., estimating chemical composition, active ingredient and mechanism of action of tested oils. Lemongrass and peppermint essential oil volatiles were preliminary evaluated via vapor phase using volatilization method. Growth inhibition, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum lethal concentration (MLC) of these pathogenic fungi were used to detect their susceptibility to each of the essential oils. Morphological changes of treated fungi, as well as its spores germination was observed by light and electron microscopy. Also, chemical analysis of essential oils were achieved by GC, GC-MS. Lemongrass oil was found to be highly fungicidal, as it showed the lowest MIC and MLC values and the highest growth inhibition; in a range of concentrations (15 to 20 µl/0.4l air space) it was effective in inhibiting fungal viability and spore germination. The main morphological changes caused by Lemongrass oil in A. niger were observed under both the light and electron microscope; these included a reduction in conidition, loss of pigmentation and disrupted conidispore structure. The results show that Lemongrass oil produces a fungitoxic effect, which supports its possible use in medicine to cure mycotic infections. |
| Keywords |
| Lemongrass; peppermint; antifungal activity; Aspergillus spp.; essential oils. |