Antimicrobial Activity of Selected Plant Spices Marketed in the West Anatolia

Herbs and spices are sources of many bioactive compounds that can improve the taste of foods as well as influence digestion and metabolism processes. The present study was performed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of ten Turkish medicinal plant spices, used in the traditional system of medicine, against 10 pathogenic bacterial species and yeast, C. albicans, using the agar well diffusion method. Anti-candidal activity was detected in 8 plants. Extracts of Alchemilla vulgaris, Laurus nobilis, Melissa officinalis, Silybum marianum, Camellia sinensis (5a), Camellia sinensis (5b), Rosmarinus officinalis, Hibiscus sp. and Foeniculum vulgare showed broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity with inhibition zones ranging from 4 to 32 mm, except Erica vulgaris. The most resistant microorganisms were Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. The most susceptible organisms were Kocuria rhizophila and Candida albicans. Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC) of crude extracts were determined for the three highly active plants showing activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli; Kocuria rhizophila, Bacillus cereus, Enterococcus faecalis and Candida albicans. MICs of active extracts ranged from 2.92 to 10