Inhibitory effect of Micromeria fruticosa ssp. brachycalyx on Streptococcus mutans biofilm formation and its antimutagenic and antioxidant activities

Abstract

This article describes the chemical composition, antibiofilm, antimutagenic and antioxidant activities of the essential oil of Micromeria fruticosa ssp. brachycalyx. GC/MS identified a total of 18 compounds, with pulegone (51.74%), L-menthone (14.78%) and piperitenone (11.67%) as the major components. The essential oil was found to exhibit an inhibitory effect on S. mutans biofilm formation according to both SEM and crystal-violet staining data. In addition to demonstrating antimutagenic activity, the essential oil exhibited no mutagenic activity. Inhibition rates against sodium azide on Salmonella typhimurium TA100 and against 4-nitro-o-phenylenediamine on Salmonella typhimurium TA98 ranged from 25%-44% and 30%-31%, respectively. Total phenol, DPPH, and β-carotene-linoleic acid contents were 253.3±3.8 µg/mg, 28.73±0.49 mg/ml and 0.79±0.021 mg/ml, respectively. These findings indicate that the essential oil of M. fruticosa ssp. brachycalyx may be considered to be a safe and effective agent for use in the development of new, commercially viable oral- and dental-care products.