Cytotoxicity and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil from Satureja montana subsp. pisidica (Lamiceae).

The antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities of the essential oil of Satureja montana ssp. pisidica from two localities (mountains Korab and Galicica) were studied. Forty-nine components were identified in the each sample. Oxygenated monoterpene hydrocarbons were the major compounds: carvacrol, thymol, carvacrol methyl ether and beta-linalool. Both tested essential oils showed very high and similar antimicrobial activity. Minimal inhibitory concentrations ranged from 12.5 microg/mL against S. epidermidis to 50 microg/mL against P. aeruginosa and C. albicans. The cytotoxic effect of the essential oils was tested against MDA-MB-361, MDA-MB-453, HeLa, LS174 and MRC5 cells. The essential oil from Korab demonstrated significantly better results than the oil from Galicica, particularly against HeLa and MDA-MB-453 cell lines, with IC50 values of 63.5 and 72.3 microg/mL, while the oil from Galicica was the most active on the human epithelial cervical cancer HeLa cells (IC50 99.7 microg/mL).