Antimicrobial activity of essential oil of Artemisia judaica L. from Algeria against multi-drug resistant bacteria from clinical origin.

Abstract: Artemisia judaica L. essential oil was studied for antibacterial activity against various clinical isolates of bacteriaresistant to a number of antibiotics. The antibacterial activity was evaluated against 20 multidrug resistant (MDR) of clinical origin compared to standard ATCC strains. The strains that showed resistance against the maximumnumber of antibiotics tested were selected for an antibacterial assay by three methods: Disc diffusion method, microatmosphere and dilution method. The obtained results demonstrated that the A. judaica essential oil possessed an excellent inhibitory effect against all of the tested strains. Themost potent results were obtained againstMRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus), Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis (their MIC was 8.75 μg/ml). MIC (Minimal Inhibitory Concentration) and MBC (Minimal Bactericidal Concentration) values for essential oil against all tested strains were equal. According to GC-MS analysis forty-one constituents were identified, which represented 84.66 % of the total essential oil, being piperitone (73.4 %) the main compound.