In vitro effects of essential oils from Ostericum koreanum against antibiotic-resistant Salmonella spp.

The essential oil fraction of Ostericum koreanum was analyzed by GC-MS. Inhibiting activities of this oil and its main components were tested by the broth dilution assay and disk diffusion test against one antibiotic-susceptible and two resistant strains of Salmonella enteritidis and S. typhimurium, respectively. The GC-MS analysis revealed thirty-four compounds; the main components were alpha-pinene (41.12%), rho-cresol (17.99%) and 4-methylacetophenone (7.90%). The essential oil of O. koreanum and its main components were significantly effective against the tested antibiotic-susceptible strains as well as against the resistant strains of the two Salmonella species, with MICs (minimum inhibitory concentrations) ranging from 2 mg/mL to 16 mg/mL. The anti-Salmonella effects of the oils were dose-dependent on Müller-Hinton agar plates in this experiment. Additionally, checkerboard titer test results demonstrated significant combined effects of streptomycin and O. koreanum oil or cresol, one of the main components of this oil, against the two streptomycin resistant strains of S. typhimurium, with FICIs ranging from 0.12 to 0.37.