Chemical composition, antibacterial and antioxidant activities of the essential oils from Thymus satureioides and Thymus pallidus.

This study was designed to examine the in vitro antibacterial and antioxidant activities of the essential oils (EOs) of Thymus satureioides (T.s) and T. pallidus (T.p). EOs were isolated by steam distillation and analyzed by capillary gas chromatography and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The major constituents of the volatile fraction of T. satureioides were bomeol (29.5%), carvacrol (9.1%), and beta-caryophyllene (8.2%), while those of T. pallidus were camphor (29.8%), dihydrocarvone (17.6%), bomeol (7.6%) and camphene (7.5%). The essential oils were tested against a panel of Gram+ and Gram- bacteria by using agar diffusion and broth dilution methods. The data indicated that the Gram-positive Bacillus subtilis was the most sensitive strain producing an average inhibition zone of 51.7 mm. Furthermore, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, known as a resistant strain, was also sensitive. The samples were also subjected to screening for their possible antioxidant activity by using the 2,2-diphenyl-l-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The IC50 values of the oil of T. satureioides and T. pallidus were 0.32 and 11.6 mg/mL, respectively.