Mānuka Oil vs. Rosemary Oil: Antimicrobial Efficacies in Wagyu and Commercial Beef against Selected Pathogenic Microbes
Open Access
- 21 March 2023
- Vol. 12 (6), 1333
- https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12061333
Abstract
Essential oils possessing antimicrobial characteristics have acquired considerable interest as an alternative to chemical preservatives in food products. This research hypothesizes that mānuka (MO) and kānuka (KO) oils may possess antimicrobial characteristics and have the potential to be used as natural preservatives for food applications. Initial experimentation was conducted to characterize MOs (with 5, 25, and 40% triketone contents), rosemary oil (RO) along with kanuka oil (KO) for their antibacterial efficacy against selected Gram-negative (Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli), and Gram-positive (Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria through disc diffusion and broth dilution assays. All MOs showed a higher antimicrobial effect against L. monocytogenes and S. aureus with a minimum inhibitory concentration below 0.04%, compared with KO (0.63%) and RO (2.5%). In chemical composition, α-pinene in KO, 1, 8 cineole in RO, calamenene, and leptospermone in MO were the major compounds, confirmed through Gas-chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. Further, the antimicrobial effect of MO and RO in vacuum-packed beef pastes prepared from New Zealand commercial breed (3% fat) and wagyu (12% fat) beef tenderloins during 16 days of refrigerated storage was compared with sodium nitrate (SN) and control (without added oil). In both meat types, compared with the SN-treated and control samples, lower growth of L. monocytogenes and S. aureus in MO- and RO- treated samples was observed. However, for Salmonella and E. coli, RO treatment inhibited microbial growth most effectively. The results suggest the potential use of MO as a partial replacement for synthetic preservatives like sodium nitrate in meats, especially against L. monocytogenes and S. aureus.Funding Information
- Massey University
This publication has 51 references indexed in Scilit:
- Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of RosemaryEnvironmental Toxicology and Pharmacology, 2011
- Antimicrobial combined action of terpenes against the food‐borne microorganisms Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereusFlavour and Fragrance Journal, 2009
- Effect of fat content on survival of Listeria monocytogenes during simulated digestion of inoculated beef frankfurters stored at 7 °CFood Microbiology, 2009
- Adiposity, fatty acid composition, and delta‐9 desaturase activity during growth in beef cattleAnimal Science Journal, 2006
- Changes in the Spoilage-Related Microbiota of Beef during Refrigerated Storage under Different Packaging ConditionsApplied and Environmental Microbiology, 2006
- Triketones active against antibiotic-resistant bacteria: Synthesis, structure–activity relationships, and mode of actionBioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry, 2005
- Essential oils: their antibacterial properties and potential applications in foods—a reviewInternational Journal of Food Microbiology, 2004
- Essential oils from New Zealand manuka: triketone and other chemotypes of Leptospermum scopariumPhytochemistry, 2004
- Antioxidant Activity of Tea Catechins in Different Lipid SystemsJournal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 1997
- Essential oils from New Zealand manuka and kanuka: Chemotaxonomy of LeptospermumPhytochemistry, 1997