An in vitro study on antimicrobial and anticancer potentiality of thyme and clove oils

The objective of the present study was to investigate the potentiality of volatile oils extracted from Thymus capitatus (L.) Hofmanns and Link (Thyme) and Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. et. L.M. Perry (Clove) on growth and protein profiles of some human and plant pathogenic bacteria. The aim was extended to study the anticancer effect of these oils on breast carcinoma cell line. Infrared (IR) spectrophotometer was used to analyze thyme and clove oils to attain information on the structural properties of their components through a large number of absorption bands; each band is an indicator for a specific functional group. Data revealed that by increasing the concentration of both oils separately, the inhibitory effect on the selected pathogenic bacterial species increased. The absolute unit (AU) of inhibition zones for the extracted thyme and clove oils with its different concentrations was calculated. The inhibitory effect of thyme oil on all bacterial species tested was greater compared to the clove oil. The presence of both thyme and clove oils in culture medium decreased the growth of the bacterial species which may be ascribed to its phenolic compounds, thymol and eugenol, respectively. The cytotoxic effect of both thyme and clove oils was tested on breast cancer cell lines (MCF7). Results showed that the increase in the concentrations of both oil types stimulate the inhibition of growth of MCF7 cell lines.