In vitro antibacterial and biofilm inhibitory activity of the sawdust essential oil of Tetraclinis articulata (vahl) against catheter-associated Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates

Abstract The aim of the present study was to determine the chemical composition, antibacterial and antibiofilm activities of the essential oil of sawdust from root burl wood of T. articulata. Nine strains including 8 clinical isolates from catheters-related infections and one ATCC 25923 were tested. Twenty-seven different compounds were identified by GC–MS in the essential oil of T. articulata extracted by hydrodistillation. Carvacrol and cedrol were the principal compounds representing 34.37 ± 0.07 and 11.07 ± 0.09 respectively. The EO had a strong antibacterial activity against all strains including one Multidrug-Resistant (MDR) and two Methicillin-Resistant S. aureus strains. Inhibition Zone Diameter (IZD) values ranged from 25 to 44 mm and the MIC values, determinated by microdilution method, ranged from 0.19 to 48 nL/mL. The EO had bactericidal effect and also exhibited at sub-lethal concentrations a very important inhibitory effect of biofilm formation of all strains.