Experimental study on the antibacterial effect of origanum volatile oil on dysentery bacilli in vivo and in vitro.

To observe the germistatic and germicidal effects of origanum volatile oil (OVI) on the dysentery bacteria, the abdominal cavity of mice was infected with Shigella sonne (Sh. sonnei) and Shigella flexneri (Sh. flexneri) F2a. After OVI was given to the mice via gastric lavage, the effects of OVI on the infected mice were observed. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) for dysentery bacteria were determined in vitro. The results showed that origanum volatile oil showed obvious protective effect on mice infected with Sh. sonnei and Sh. flexneri F2a and it had germistatic and germicidal effects on dysentry bacteria. We are led to conclude that origanum volatile oil is an effective medicine against the infection of dysentery bacteria.