Antimicrobial Profiling of Origanum majorana L. and Marrubium vulgare L. Extracts Against Selected Pathogenic Isolates

Abstract

The diverse secondary phytochemicals found in medicinal and aromatic plants are used as novel antimicrobial agents. This study investigates the biological activity of two distinct species from Lamiaceae family (Origanum majorana L. and Marrubium vulgare L.) against bacteria and fungi isolates. Our findings showed that most bacterial species tested were resistant to the extracts; however, Gram-positive strains, specifically Staphylococcus aureus demonstrated significant growth inhibition when subjected to the ethanolic fraction of M. vulgare, suggesting that the architectural nuances of the Gram-positive cell wall may be particularly susceptible to the lipophilic constituents of this extract. Consequently, M. vulgare emerges as a viable candidate for targeted therapies against Staphylococcal infections. The study further identifies a clear hierarchy in solvent efficacy, as ethanolic preparations consistently eclipsed their aqueous counterparts in antifungal potency. Inhibition percentage values for F. oxysporum were 63 and 89% when using ethanol extracts of M. vulgare and O. majorana. The lowest inhibition percentage (19%) was obtained by the aqueous extract of O. majorana on A. niger