Cinnamon bark oil minimum inhibitory concentration for Staphylococcus aureus
Conference Year
January 2019
Abstract
With the alarming rate at which bacteria are growing resistant to antibiotics, it is necessary to look for alternative antimicrobial agents. The components of plant-based essential oils have been shown to possess antimicrobial properties, and it has yet to be demonstrated that bacteria are capable developing resistance against essential oils (EO). Staphylococcus aureus is a zoonotic pathogen, and infections due to methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) are significant public health problems. Several studies have demonstrated that cinnamon EO inhibits S. aureus growth in vitro. When evaluating EOs antimicrobial activity against S. aureus, four methodologies have been used: agar disc diffusion, agar dilution, broth micro titer plate dilution, and vapor phase dilution. However, it has yet to be determined which method is the most suitable for assessing the antimicrobial properties of EOs. Determining the most effective method would provide the foundation needed to confidently progress with future studies examining the potential of incorporating EOs into alternative antimicrobial medications. A comparative study, analyzing S.aureus’ susceptibility to cinnamon EO will be conducted, incorporating agar disc diffusion (DD), agar dilution (AD), broth micro titer plate dilution (BM), and vapor phase dilution (VP) methodologies. It is hypothesized that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of cinnamonEO for S. aureus observed for the BM and AD methods will be lower than the MIC values foreither DD or VP methodologies. We speculate that the lower MIC values are related to the direct contact made between the EO, suspended in the agar or broth medium, and the bacteria, in contrast to the EO vapors captured in the overhead portion of the Petri plates for the VP method and trays.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
John Barlow
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Program/Major
Animal Science
Primary Research Category
Biological Sciences
Secondary Research Category
Health Sciences
Tertiary Research Category
Food & Environment Studies
Cinnamon bark oil minimum inhibitory concentration for Staphylococcus aureus
With the alarming rate at which bacteria are growing resistant to antibiotics, it is necessary to look for alternative antimicrobial agents. The components of plant-based essential oils have been shown to possess antimicrobial properties, and it has yet to be demonstrated that bacteria are capable developing resistance against essential oils (EO). Staphylococcus aureus is a zoonotic pathogen, and infections due to methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) are significant public health problems. Several studies have demonstrated that cinnamon EO inhibits S. aureus growth in vitro. When evaluating EOs antimicrobial activity against S. aureus, four methodologies have been used: agar disc diffusion, agar dilution, broth micro titer plate dilution, and vapor phase dilution. However, it has yet to be determined which method is the most suitable for assessing the antimicrobial properties of EOs. Determining the most effective method would provide the foundation needed to confidently progress with future studies examining the potential of incorporating EOs into alternative antimicrobial medications. A comparative study, analyzing S.aureus’ susceptibility to cinnamon EO will be conducted, incorporating agar disc diffusion (DD), agar dilution (AD), broth micro titer plate dilution (BM), and vapor phase dilution (VP) methodologies. It is hypothesized that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of cinnamonEO for S. aureus observed for the BM and AD methods will be lower than the MIC values foreither DD or VP methodologies. We speculate that the lower MIC values are related to the direct contact made between the EO, suspended in the agar or broth medium, and the bacteria, in contrast to the EO vapors captured in the overhead portion of the Petri plates for the VP method and trays.