In vitro antimicrobial activity of Lemon grass oil by MIC and agar well diffusion method
Amita Gaurav Dimri, Dushyant Singh, Ruchi Singh, Abhishek Chauhan and M.L Aggarwal
*Email: pantamita@rediffmail.com
Abstract-Food preservatives are used to increase the shelf life of food and to maintain the quality for longer time. In the last scenario no herbal ayurvedic preservative had been considered with respect to the use of chemical preservative. Due to increasing demands for natural and preservative free compounds promoted an idea of the replacement of synthetic preservatives with essential oils of antimicrobial properties. Essential oils from medicinal plants are potential source of novel antimicrobial compounds especially against food spoilage pathogens. The aim of this project was to study antimicrobial activity of essential oil from Lemongrass (Cymbopogan citratus) oil against food spoilage organisms Escherichia coli, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus and fungus Aspergillus brasilliensis, Candida albicans, Chaetomium globosum and Penicillium funiculosum using agar well diffusion method. The antimicrobial activity was evaluated by measuring the zone of inhibition. The oil at 30% concentration completely/partially inhibited the growth of food spoilage pathogens.The successful effectiveness of Lemon grass oil could also play a major role in replacing the chemical preservative.
