Browsing by Author "Pires, P.C."
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Antimicrobial natural productsPublication . Soares, M.O.; Ferreira da Vinha, Ana; Coutinho, F.; Pires, P.C.Our ethnopharmacological studies, in several Angolan regions, showed that Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf., it´s applied in folk medicine to treat several diseases In order to validate antibacterial activity several studies were performed using 12 bacterial strains. The essencial oil samples of Cymbopogon citratus, obtained by hydro-distillation, were analysed by GC and GC-MS. Constituents were identified and tested for their antimicrobial activity by the disc agar diffusion technique and the dilution technique against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC 12228) and other bacterial strains. Broad spectrum antibacterial activity was exhibited by the Cymbopogon citratus essential oil against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria as well as for MRSA that exhibited more sensitive towards the test substance compared to the non-MRSA. Our work was the first to show that Cymbopogon citratus essential oil has higher antibacterial activity against MRSA strains, than commercial antibiotics. These discover opens a new hope to fight against nosocomial infection.
- Cymbopogon citratus EO antimicrobial activity against multi-drug resistant Gram-positive strains and non-albicans-Candida speciesPublication . Soares, M.O.; Ferreira da Vinha, Ana; Barreira, Sérgio; Coutinho, F.; Aires-Gonçalves, S.; Oliveira, M.B.P.P.; Pires, P.C.; Castro, A.We studied the antibacterial and antifungal activity of Cymbopogon citratus. These properties were studied on hospital isolated multidrug resistant strains Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia and their respective ATCC control strains. Pathogenic Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis, and Candida tropicalis were also tested. Results of the present investigation provide evidence that the EO of Cymbopogon citratus could have a potential application in the treatment and prevention of diseases caused by Staphylococcus aureus methicillin-resistant strains and by vancomicin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis. Cymbopogon citratus EO is also effective against Candida albicans as well as the emerging Candida parapsilosis and Candida tropicalis pointing to its usefulness as an antifungal agent.
- Importance of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) consumption on the plasma status of antioxidant microconstituents in healthy young womenPublication . Ferreira da Vinha, Ana; Pires, P.C.; Soares, M.O.; Iglésias, R.; Pérez, M.J.; Estévez, J.G.Tomato fruit and especially concentrated tomato paste are importante sources of antioxidantes in the mediterranean diet. Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum) are widely consumed either raw or after processing and can provide a significant proportion of the total antioxidants in diet.