Biological Activities of Essential Oils: From Plant Chemoecology to Traditional Healing Systems

The volatile oils of black pepper [Piper nigrum L. (Piperaceae)], clove [Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & Perry (Myrtaceae)], geranium [Pelargonium graveolens L'Herit (Geraniaceae)], nutmeg [Myristica fragrans Houtt. (Myristicaceae), oregano [Origanum vulgare ssp. hirtum (Link) Letsw. (Lamiaceae)] and thyme [Thymus vulgaris L. (Lamiaceae)] were assessed for antibacterial activity against 25 different genera of bacteria. These included animal and plant pathogens, food poisoning and spoilage bacteria. The volatile oils exhibited considerable inhibitory effects against all the organisms under test while their major components demonstrated various degrees of growth inhibition.

Nuclear factor of kappaB (NF-kappaB) is a sequence-specific transcription factor that is known to be involved in the inflammatory and innate immune responses. Although the importance of NF-KB in immunity is undisputed, recent evidence indicates that NF-kappaB and the signalling pathways that are involved in its activation are also important for tumour development. NF-kappaB should therefore receive as much attention from cancer researchers as it has already from immunologists.