The Germicidal Effect of Marjoram Alcoholic Extract on Staphylococcus aureus, E.coli, and Salmonella enterica

Background and Medicinal plants are of great value in disease prevention and sustaining healthy communities. Marjoram is a plant of the mint family with large antibacterial effect on some microorganisms. In this research the antimicrobial activity of marjoram alcoholic extracts (methanol and ethanol) were examined on Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), E.coli (ATCC 25922) and Salmonella enterica (ATCC 13076) using disk diffusion method. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the extracts were measured by germicidal tube dilution method. The MIC and MBC values for ethanol and methanol extracts were equal on E.coli (100 and 120 mg/ml, respectively). These concentrations also had equal volumes on Salmonella enterica (80 and 90 mg/ml, respectively). The results showed the alcoholic extracts of marjoram with strong antibacterial properties, amongst which ethanol extract was found to be the most effective with maximum effect on E.coli and least impact on Salmonella enterica.