Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

BIOACTIVE PROPERTIES OF NATURAL COMPOUNDS EXTRACTED FROM LEAVES OF CISTUS LADANIFER

H. Bakrim, M.H. Zerrouk1, O. El Galiou, M. Attaleb, L. Benbacer, M. El Mzibri and A. Laglaoui

Abstract

The main problem faced by the food industry is the deterioration of food by microorganisms and oxidation, and growing interest is widely given to identify new products with preservative characteristics with limited impact on human health. In this field, we have investigated the potential benefits of C.ladanifer, collected from the North of Morocco, by assessing the antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant activities of extracts obtained from dry plant leaves. All extracts were screened against three Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria using the disc diffusion method and the microdilution assay. The extracts were notably active against S. aureus (11 to 12 mm and MIC =8.75 to 17.5 mg/ml). Antibiofilm assay revealed that all tested samples are capable of inhibiting at least 50% of the staphylococcal biofilm matrix, while the real time bacterial growth measurements proved that dichloromethane extracts can exert a bacteriostatic effect on the strain. The antifungal assay revealed the sensitivity of B.cinerea and C.albicans towards low doses of dichloromethane extracts (100% inhibition at 1.25 mg/ml for B.cinerea and MIC of 17.5 mg/ml for the yeast strain). On the other hand, a close relationship was obtained between the antioxidant capacity of the tested extracts and their phenolic content. The aqueous extract exhibited a strong antioxidant activity and contains a high amount of polyphenols. In conclusion, the present study revealed that the organic extracts of C. ladanifer have an antimicrobial activity and the aqueous extract showed an antioxidant power making this plant a strong candidate to be incorporated in new systems to prevent food contamination and extend its shelf life.