Essential Oils as Alternative Biocides for the Preservation of Waterlogged Archaeological Wood

Waterlogged archaeological wood is exposed to a high risk of biological degradation during the post-excavation phases of storage and restoration. For this reason, often biocides must be used to preserve wooden remains. In the present work three essential oils (cinnamon, wild thyme, and common thyme) were tested as possible alternative biocides to use in the preservation of waterlogged archaeological wood. The oils were first tested in vitro to establish the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and to evaluate the biocidal activity on selected fungal strains. Then, the established MIC was applied on waterlogged archaeological wood samples and during an actual restoration treatment. The effectiveness of the oils was evaluated through cultural analyses, ATP quantification, and next-generation sequencing. The results showed that the oils caused a significant decrease in the vitality of fungal mycelia grown in vitro and of the microbiota present in treated wood and storage water. Furthermore, an influence on the composition of the bacterial communities of treated wood samples was observed. Although further tests are needed to evaluate interferences with the materials used during restoration procedures, essential oils could be considered as a possible alternative to the currently used biocide.

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In VitroAntimicrobial Activity of Essential Oil ofThymus schimperi,Matricaria chamomilla,Eucalyptus globulus, andRosmarinus officinalis

International Journal of Microbiology ◽

10.1155/2016/9545693 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Awol Mekonnen ◽

Berhanu Yitayew ◽

Alemnesh Tesema ◽

Solomon Taddese

Keyword(s):

Antimicrobial Activity ◽

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Essential Oil ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Antimicrobial Activities ◽

Diffusion Method ◽

Drug Preparation ◽

Bacteria And Fungi

In this study, thein vitroantimicrobial activities of four plant essential oils (T. schimperi,E. globulus,R. officinalis, andM. Chamomilla) were evaluated against bacteria and fungi. The studies were carried out using agar diffusion method for screening the most effective essential oils and agar dilution to determine minimum inhibitory concentration of the essential oils. Results of this study revealed that essential oils ofT. schimperi,E. globulus, andR. officinaliswere active against bacteria and some fungi. The antimicrobial effect ofM. chamomillawas found to be weaker and did not show any antimicrobial activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration values ofT. schimperiwere<15.75 mg/mL for most of the bacteria and fungi used in this study. The minimum inhibitory concentration values of the other essential oils were in the range of 15.75–36.33 mg/mL against tested bacteria. This study highlighted the antimicrobial activity of the essential oil ofE. globulus,M. chamomilla,T. Schimperi, andR. officinalis. The results indicated thatT. schimperihave shown strong antimicrobial activity which could be potential candidates for preparation of antimicrobial drug preparation.

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Towards improved understanding of PEG-impregnated waterlogged archaeological wood: A model study on recent oak

Holzforschung ◽

10.1515/hf.2010.024 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 64 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Ingela Bjurhager ◽

Jonas Ljungdahl ◽

Lennart Wallström ◽

E. Kristofer Gamstedt ◽

Lars A. Berglund

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Microfibril Angle ◽

Mechanical Tests ◽

Chemical Degradation ◽

Cellulose Microfibrils ◽

Radial Compression ◽

Biological Degradation ◽

Archaeological Wood ◽

Waterlogged Archaeological Wood ◽

The Impact

Abstract To prevent deformation and cracking of waterlogged archaeological wood, polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a bulk impregnation agent is commonly applied. PEG maintains the wood in a swollen state during drying. However, swelling of wood can reduce its mechanical properties. In this study, the cellular structure of oak and cell wall swelling was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of transverse cross-sections, and the microfibril angle of oak fibers was determined by wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS). Samples of recent European oak (Quercus robur L) impregnated with PEG (molecular weight of 600) were tested in axial tension and radial compression. Mechanical tests showed that axial tensile modulus and strength were only slightly affected by PEG, whereas radial compressive modulus and yield strength were reduced by up to 50%. This behavior can be explained by the microstructure and deformation mechanisms of the material. Microfibril angles in tensile test samples were close to zero. This implies tensile loading of cellulose microfibrils within the fiber cell walls without almost any shear in the adjacent amorphous matrix. These results are important because they can help separate the impact of PEG on mechanical properties from that of chemical degradation in archaeological artifacts, which display only small to moderate biological degradation.

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In vitro antibacterial activity of 34 plant essential oils against Alternaria alternata

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/201913606006 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 136 ◽

pp. 06006

Author(s):

Qiyu Lu ◽

Ji Liu ◽

Caihong Tu ◽

Juan Li ◽

Chunlong Lei ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Essential Oil ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Alternaria Alternata ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Drug Susceptibility ◽

Inhibitory Effect ◽

Plant Essential Oils ◽

Mustard Essential Oil

To determine the antibacterial effect of 34 plant essential oils on Alternaria alternata, 34 plant essential oils such as asarum essential oil, garlic essential oil, and mustard essential oil are used as inhibition agents to isolate A. alternata from citrus as indicator bacteria, through the bacteriostasis test and drug susceptibility test, the types of essential oils with the best inhibitory effect were screened and their concentration was determined. The results showed that the best inhibition effect was mustard essential oil with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 250 μl/L and a minimum bactericidal concentration of 250 μl/L. Followed by the Litsea cubeba essential oil and basil oil, the minimum inhibitory concentration is 500 μl/L.

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IN VITRO CHARACTERIZATION OF ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF SELECTED ESSENTIAL OILS

INDIAN DRUGS ◽

10.53879/id.57.12.12466 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 57 (12) ◽

pp. 61-64

Author(s):

C. Rath Chandi ◽

A. Samal

Keyword(s):

Antifungal Activity ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Inhibition Mechanism ◽

Active Components ◽

Irreversible Damage ◽

Antifungal Activities ◽

In Vitro Characterization

Antifungal activity of seven essential oils was studied primarily against C. albicans and E. floccosum. Four essential oils viz. turmeric, palmarosa, lemongrass and citronella, that revealed better antifungal activities during screening, were characterized further. Minimum Inhibitory concentration (MIC) and phenol coefficient values of the oils ranged between 0.97 to 62.5 µl/ml and 0125 to 0.75 respectively. The oils retained the antifungal activities when treated at high temperature (1000 C for 1h) and pressure (autoclaved), indicating presence of thermostable and barostable active components in them. The oils also resisted sonication (33,000Hz for 30min) and revealed antifungal activities against the two pathogens. Immediate killing of E. floccosum, is attributable to an irreversible damage to the cells. Antifungal activity of these oils as recorded during the study, could be attributable to the membrane inhibition mechanism and was observed to be fungicidal in nature.

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Chemical composition of essential oils from the apiaceae family, cytotoxicity, and their antifungal activity in vitro against candida species from oral cavity

Brazilian Journal of Biology ◽

10.1590/1519-6984.182206 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 79 (3) ◽

pp. 432-437 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

J. N. Vieira ◽

C. L. Gonçalves ◽

J. P. V. Villarreal ◽

V. M. Gonçalves ◽

R. G. Lund ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chemical Composition ◽

Antifungal Activity ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Anethum Graveolens ◽

Candida Spp ◽

Foeniculum Vulgare ◽

Main Components ◽

L929 Mouse

Abstract The aims of this research were: evaluate the chemical composition and the cytotoxicity of the Cuminum cyminum (cumin), Anethum graveolens (dill), Pimpinella anisum (anise) and Foeniculum vulgare (fennel) essential oils, as well as their antifungal activity in vitro against ten Candida spp. isolates. The chemical composition of the oils was analyzed by means of gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The cytotoxicity assays were performed, using the cell proliferation reagent WST-1 in L929 mouse fibroblasts (20x103 well-1). The determinate the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC), was performed through the Broth Microdilution technique (CLSI). The chemical main components were the cuminaldehyde (32.66%) for cumin, carvone (34.89%) for the dill, trans-anethole (94.01%) for the anise and anethole (79.62%) for the fennel. Anise and fennel did not were cytotoxic in all the tested concentrations, however the cumin oil was cytotoxic in the concentration of 20 mg.mL-1 and the dill in the concentrations of 20 and 8 mg.mL-1. All yeasts were susceptible against the evaluated essential oils. Cumin presented the lowest MIC against yeasts. We concluded that all the essential oils presented inhibitory action against Candida spp., and C . cyminum, P. anisum and F. vulgare were not cytotoxic in the same minimum inhibitory concentrations for the fungi.

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Microbiota in Waterlogged Archaeological Wood: Use of Next-Generation Sequencing to Evaluate the Risk of Biodegradation

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10134636 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (13) ◽

pp. 4636 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Federica Antonelli ◽

Alfonso Esposito ◽

Giulia Galotta ◽

Barbara Davidde Petriaggi ◽

Silvano Piazza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Next Generation Sequencing ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Illumina Miseq ◽

Background Information ◽

Archaeological Sites ◽

Next Generation ◽

Archaeological Wood ◽

Waterlogged Archaeological Wood ◽

Sequencing Chemistry ◽

Generation Sequencing

Waterlogged archaeological wood (WAW) is considered a precious material, first-hand account of past civilizations. Like any organic material, it is subjected to biodegradative action of microorganisms whose activity could be particularly fast and dangerous during the phases of excavation, storage and restoration. The present work aimed to characterize the microorganisms present in WAW during these tricky periods to evaluate the biological risk it is exposed to. The bacterial and fungal communities inhabiting woods coming from two archaeological sites (Pisa and Naples) were investigated through Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS). High-throughput sequencing of extracted DNA fragments was performed using the reversible terminator-based sequencing chemistry with the Illumina MiSeq platform. The analyses revealed that the two archaeological sites showed distinct richness and biodiversity, as expected. In all the WAWs, the bacterial community harbored mainly Proteobacteria, whereas Bacteroidetes was well represented only in Naples communities and taxa belonging to the phyla Chloroflexi only in the Pisa site. Concerning the fungal community, the two sites were dominated by different phyla: Ascomycota for Naples samples and Basidiomycota for Pisa. Interestingly, most of the identified bacterial and fungal taxa have cellulolytic or ligninolytic ability. These results provide new and useful background information concerning the composition of WAW microbiota and the threat it represents for this precious material.

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Evaluation of Plant Origin Essential Oils as Herbal Biocides for the Protection of Caves Belonging to Natural and Cultural Heritage Sites

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms9091836 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (9) ◽

pp. 1836

Author(s):

Anthoula A. Argyri ◽

Agapi I. Doulgeraki ◽

Eftychia G. Varla ◽

Vasiliki C. Bikouli ◽

Pantelis I. Natskoulis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cultural Heritage ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Plant Origin ◽

Bacterial Isolates ◽

Origanum Vulgare ◽

Heritage Sites ◽

Fungal Isolates ◽

Satureja Thymbra

The present study concerns the serious issue of biodeterioration of the caves belonging to natural and cultural heritage sites due to the development of various microorganisms. Thus, a series of 18 essential oils (EOs) extracted from various Greek plants were evaluated in vitro (concentrations of 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0% v/v) against 35 bacterial and 31 fungi isolates (isolated from a Greek cave) and the antimicrobial activity was evident through the changes in optical density of microbial suspensions. In continuance, eight (8) representative bacterial and fungal isolates were further used to evaluate the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and non-inhibitory concentration (NIC) values of the most effective EOs. According to the results, two EOs of Origanum vulgare were the most effective by inhibiting the growth of all the tested microorganisms at 0.1% (v/v), followed by that of Satureja thymbra which inhibited all bacterial isolates at 0.1% (v/v) and fungal isolates at 0.1, 0.2 and 0.5% (v/v) (depending on the isolate). The MIC ranged between 0.015–0.157 and 0.013–0.156 (v/v) for the bacterial and fungal isolates respectively, depending on the case. The current study demonstrated that conventional biocides may be replaced by herbal biocides with significant prospects for commercial exploitation.

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TheIn VitroAntimicrobial Activity ofLavandula angustifoliaEssential Oil in Combination with Other Aroma-Therapeutic Oils

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2013/852049 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 38

Author(s):

Stephanie de Rapper ◽

Guy Kamatou ◽

Alvaro Viljoen ◽

Sandy van Vuuren

Keyword(s):

Essential Oil ◽

Essential Oils ◽

Citrus Sinensis ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Fractional Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Ionization Detector ◽

Cinnamomum Zeylanicum ◽

Oil Blends ◽

Flame Ionization

The antimicrobial activity ofLavandula angustifoliaessential oil was assessed in combination with 45 other oils to establish possible interactive properties. The composition of the selected essential oils was confirmed using GC-MS with a flame ionization detector. The microdilution minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assay was undertaken, whereby the fractional inhibitory concentration (ΣFIC) was calculated for the oil combinations. When lavender oil was assayed in 1 : 1 ratios with other oils, synergistic (26.7%), additive (48.9%), non-interactive (23.7%), and antagonistic (0.7%) interactions were observed. When investigating different ratios of the two oils in combination, the most favourable interactions were whenL. angustifoliawas combined withCinnamomum zeylanicumor withCitrus sinensis,againstC. albicansandS. aureus,respectively. In 1 : 1 ratios, 75.6% of the essential oils investigated showed either synergistic or additive results, lendingin vitrocredibility to the use of essential oil blends in aroma-therapeutic practices. Within the field of aromatherapy, essential oils are commonly employed in mixtures for the treatment of infectious diseases; however, very little evidence exists to support the use in combination. This study lends some credence to the concomitant use of essential oils blended with lavender.

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Antimicrobial and Phytotoxic Activity of Origanum heracleoticum and O. majorana Essential Oils Growing in Cilento (Southern Italy)

Molecules ◽

10.3390/molecules24142576 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 (14) ◽

pp. 2576 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Teresa Della Pepa ◽

Hazem S. Elshafie ◽

Raffaele Capasso ◽

Vincenzo De Feo ◽

Ippolito Camele ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Essential Oils ◽

Spore Germination ◽

Xanthomonas Campestris ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Germination Percentage ◽

Penicillium Expansum ◽

Clavibacter Michiganensis ◽

Radicle Growth ◽

Phytotoxic Activity

There is a growing interest in a potential use of essential oils (EOs) as a replacement for traditional pesticides and herbicides. The aims of this study were to: (i) Identify the chemical composition of the two EOs derived from Origanum heracleoticum L. and O. majorana L., (ii) evaluate the in vitro antifungal activity of the EOs against some postharvest phytopathogens (Botrytis cinerea, Penicillium expansum, Aspergillus niger and Monilinia fructicola), (iii) evaluate the in vitro antibacterial activity against Bacillus megaterium, Clavibacter michiganensis, Xanthomonas campestris, Pseudomonas fluorescens and P. syringae pv. phaseolicola, (iv) evaluate the effect of both studied EOs on the spore germination percentage and their minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against M. fructicola, and (v) study the possible phytotoxicity of the two EOs and their major constituents, carvacrol for O. heracleoticum and terpinen-4-ol for O. majorana, against tha germination and initial radicle growth of radish, lettuce, garden cress and tomato. The two EOs demonstrated promising in vitro antimicrobial and antifungal activities against all tested microorganisms. EOs showed high inhibition of spore germination percentage at the minimal inhibitory concentration of 500 and 2000 µg/mL, respectively. Moreover, both germination and radical elongation of selected plant species were sensitive to the oils.

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The hygiene of slicing machines, carving knives and can-openers

Journal of Hygiene ◽

10.1017/s0022172400041309 ◽

1968 ◽

Vol 66 (3) ◽

pp. 439-450 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

R. J. Gilbert ◽

Isobel M. Maurer

Keyword(s):

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Inhibitory Concentration ◽

Food Handling ◽

Personal Effort ◽

Before And After ◽

Paratyphi B ◽

Cleaning Procedures ◽

And Storage ◽

Made In

SummaryExperiments have been made in several supermarkets, shops and cafés to determine the bacterial counts on slicing machines, carving knives and can-openers after contact with various cooked and canned meats, and to find a simple, quick and effective cleaning method for such articles of equipment. The importance of personal effort in cleaning rather than a reliance on the known attributes of detergent/disinfectants is stressed. The methods available for testing the efficiency of cleaning procedures are outlined.In vitro tests have shown that the detergent/disinfectant used in the present study at a concentration of 0·75 % (w/v) was satisfactory. This concentration was the minimum inhibitory concentration for Salmonella paratyphi B, which was the most resistant of fifteen strains of bacteria studied.The design of slicing machines and can-openers is discussed in relation to safety in use and ease of cleaning. Recommendations concerning the necessity of regular and effective cleaning of food-handling equipment and storage of cooked and canned meats before and after slicing are given.

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