Essential Oil of Lavandula officinalis: Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activities

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the chemical composition of the essential oil of <i>Lavandula officinalis</i> from Morocco using the GC-MS technique and assess the antibacterial effects against seven pathogenic bacteria strains isolated from the food origins of <i>Salmonella infantis</i>, <i>Salmonella kentucky</i>, <i>Salmonella newport,</i> three serotypes of <i>Escherichia coli</i> (O114H8K11, O127K88ac, O127H40K11) and <i>Klebsiella.</i> Tests of sensitivity were carried out on a solid surface using the Disc Diffusion Method. Results showed that <i>E. coli</i> and <i>S.newport</i> were sensitive to <i>Lavandula officinalis</i> essential oil. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were determined using the method of agar dilution. The antibacterial results showed that four strains (three serotypes of <i>E. coli</i>, and <i>S. newport</i>) were remarkedly sensitive to <i>Lavandula officinalis</i> essential oil, giving MIC values of 88.7 µg/mL and 177.5 µg/mL. The molecular docking of the main oil products with the <i>E. coli</i> target protein 1VLY, showed that eucalyptol and linalyl acetate bind efficiently with the active site of the target protein. In particular, eucalyptol showed a higher activity than gentamicin used as positive control with a binding energy of -5.72 kcal/mol and -5.55 kcal/mol, respectively.