Resistance to antibacterial agents has become a serious problem for global health. The current study evaluated the antimicrobial activities of essential oil and respective fractions of Trachyspermum ammi (L.) Sprague. Seeds of the essential oil were extracted and fractionated using column chromatography. All fractions were then analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Antifungal and antibacterial activities of the oil and its fractions were assessed using microdilution method. Compounds γ-terpinene (48.07%), ρ-cymene (33.73%), and thymol (17.41%) were determined as major constituents. The effect of fraction II was better than total essential oil, fraction I, and standard thymol. The greater effect of fraction II compared to standard thymol showed the synergistic effects of the ingredients in this fraction. As this fraction and also total oil were effective on the studied microorganism, the combination of these products with current antimicrobial agents could be considered as new antimicrobial compounds in further investigations.
Keywords: antimicrobial activity; essential oil; nosocomial infection.
© The Author(s) 2014.