Anti-bacterial activity, level of cytotoxicity and chemical constituents of essential oil of lemongrass under three different artificial growth conditions

Objective: To evaluate the antibacterial activity of Essential Oils (EO) extracted from Lemongrass (LG) (Cymbopogon citratus, stapf.) against a broad range of food pathogens. Design: Experimental Study In Vitro. Setting: University of Bahrain, Bahrain. Method: EO from LG were extracted by hydrodistillation and their chemical composition were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. These EO were tested for antibacterial activity against gram-negative and positive bacteria in three different agricultural growth media. The cytotoxicity of the EO extracts of LG was tested using the Brine Shrimp Test (BST) method. Result: The EO pooled mixture exhibited significant antibacterial activity against all the bacterial test strains (p>0.05); the most significant was against P. Vulgaris with 17–24 mm inhibition zone in the diffusion test (p>0.001). EO yield for sodium and phosphorus was detected in compost, 1.9% and 0.6%, respectively. For potassium, the highest level was detected for hydroponic (3.2%) and sodium the highest level for sand (1.8%). Conclusion: The LG oil revealed significant antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and negative bacterial strains due to the presence of diverse chemical components.