Essential Oil of Rosmarinus officinalis L.: Phytochemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activity Against Multidrug-Resistant Strains Isolated from Cucumbers
- 1Instituto de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Avenida Universidad 133, Colonia San Miguel Huatengo, Santiago Tulantepec de Lugo Guerrero 43775, Hidalgo, Mexico
- 2Escuela Superior de Apan, Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Carretera Apan-Calpulalpan, Km 8, Chimalpa Tlalayote, Apan 43920, Hidalgo, Mexico
Abstract
The cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is eaten raw or lightly processed, which makes it a potential vehicle for foodborne bacteria; the spread of resistant strains has renewed interest in plant-derived control agents. This work characterized the phytochemical profile of Rosmarinus officinalis essential oil (REO) and assessed its antioxidant capacity and its antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus isolated from cucumber fruits. REO was obtained by steam distillation in a Clevenger-type apparatus (yield 1.3%). Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) identified 21 compounds, among which α-pinene (32.53%), 1,8-cineole (20.73%), and verbenone (6.80%) predominated. Antioxidant activity was 49.60 ± 0.69 µM TE/mL REO for the 2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical and 13.15 ± 0.51 µM TE/mL REO for the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, with IC50 values of 24.46 ± 2.11 and 56.43 ± 1.86 mg/mL, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranged from 0.19 to 3.12 mg/mL and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) from 0.39 to 6.25 mg/mL. These results highlight REO’s in vitro bactericidal potential and support its evaluation as a component of disinfectant formulations or edible coatings for cucumber.
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BibTeX
@article{hernandezgarcia2026essential,
title = {{Essential Oil of Rosmarinus officinalis L.: Phytochemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activity Against Multidrug-Resistant Strains Isolated from Cucumbers}},
author = {Adriana Hernández-García and Alfredo Madariaga-Navarrete and Nallely Rivero-Perez and Cesar Uriel López-Palestina and Alma Delia Hernández-Fuentes and José Esteban Aparicio-Burgos and Armando Peláez-Acero and Mariana Saucedo-García and Adrian Zaragoza-Bastida},
journal = {Molecules},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/molecules31203669},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3669},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Essential Oil of Rosmarinus officinalis L.: Phytochemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activity Against Multidrug-Resistant Strains Isolated from Cucumbers
AU - Adriana Hernández-García
AU - Alfredo Madariaga-Navarrete
AU - Nallely Rivero-Perez
AU - Cesar Uriel López-Palestina
AU - Alma Delia Hernández-Fuentes
AU - José Esteban Aparicio-Burgos
AU - Armando Peláez-Acero
AU - Mariana Saucedo-García
AU - Adrian Zaragoza-Bastida
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Molecules
DO - 10.3390/molecules31203669
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3669
AB - The cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is eaten raw or lightly processed, which makes it a potential vehicle for foodborne bacteria; the spread of resistant strains has renewed interest in plant-derived control agents. This work characterized the phytochemical profile of Rosmarinus officinalis essential oil (REO) and assessed its antioxidant capacity and its antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus isolated from cucumber fruits. REO was obtained by steam distillation in a Clevenger-type apparatus (yield 1.3%). Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) identified 21 compounds, among which α-pinene (32.53%), 1,8-cineole (20.73%), and verbenone (6.80%) predominated. Antioxidant activity was 49.60 ± 0.69 µM TE/mL REO for the 2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical and 13.15 ± 0.51 µM TE/mL REO for the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, with IC50 values of 24.46 ± 2.11 and 56.43 ± 1.86 mg/mL, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranged from 0.19 to 3.12 mg/mL and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) from 0.39 to 6.25 mg/mL. These results highlight REO’s in vitro bactericidal potential and support its evaluation as a component of disinfectant formulations or edible coatings for cucumber.
SN - 1420-3049
ER -