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Nanoliposomes are drug delivery systems that improve bioavailability by encapsulating therapeutic agents. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of nanoliposomal (NL) formulation on enhancing the bioavailability of essential oil. The essential oil of Satureja hortensis (SHO) was encapsulated in nanoliposomes (SHNLs). Physicochemical characterizations of NL formulations (size, charge, polydispersity index [PDI]) were evaluated by dynamic light scattering technique. The nanoliposome encapsulation efficiency (EE) was calculated as 89.90%. The prepared bionanosystems demonstrated significant antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli ATCC 10536, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 15442, and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC as determined by the agar diffusion method and microdilution tests. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for SHNLs were found to be 5.187 µg/µL for E. coli and 2.59 µg/µL for both P. aeruginosa and S. aureus . Importantly, despite the lower substance content, both SHNLs and SHO exhibited comparable antibacterial activity against all tested strains. Furthermore, in order to determine the toxicity profile and possible effects on DNA damage or repair both the genotoxic and antigenotoxic effects of SHNLs were assessed using the cytokinesis-blocked micronucleus (CBMN) method in human lymphocyte cultures. The experimental data collectively indicate that the NL formulation of the S. hortensis essential oil enhances antibacterial activities and provides genoprotective effects against DNA damage. This highlights the significance of liposomal formulations of antioxidants in augmenting their biological activity. The results indicate that SHNLs can be a safe antibacterial agent for the pharmaceutical industry.

The article investigated the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of extracts from two aromatic plants- Satureja hortensis L. (SE) and Rosmarinus officinalis L. (RE), encapsulated in alginate, on-yogurt properties. The encapsulation efficiency was controlled by FTIR and SEM analysis. In both extracts, the individual polyphenol content was determined by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS. The total polyphenol content and the antioxidant activity were spectrophotometrically quantified. The antimicrobial properties of SE and RE against gram-positive bacteria ( Bacillus cereus , Enterococcus faecalis , Staphylococcus aureus , Geobacillus stearothermophilus ), gram-negative bacteria ( Escherichia coli , Acinetobacter baumannii , Salmonella abony ) and yeasts ( Candida albicans ) were analyzed in vitro. The encapsulated extracts were used to prepare the functional concentrated yogurt. It was established that the addition of 0.30-0.45% microencapsulated plant extracts caused the inhibition of the post-fermentation process, the improvement of the textural parameters of the yogurt during storage, thus the shelf life of the yogurt increased by seven days, compared to the yogurt simple. Mutual information analysis was applied to establish the correlation between the concentration of the encapsulated extracts on the sensory, physical-chemical, and textural characteristics of the yogurt.

Purpose: The current study investigated the effects of gamma irradiation on biochemical parameters and secondary metabolite accumulation in Summer Savory under field conditions., Materials and Methods: The dry seeds of Summer Savory (with a moisture content of 12%) were exposed to gamma radiation at the doses of 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 Gy. Non-irradiated seeds (0 Gy) were used as control., Results: Our findings showed that gamma radiation at low doses (20-40 Gy) had no effect on biochemical parameters and secondary metabolites accumulation in S. hortensis . These parameters are steadily and significantly increased by raising gamma irradiation doses from 40 to 100 Gy. The highest amount of chlorophyll a and b, carotenoids, anthocyanin, and total phenolic and flavonoid content were observed in 80 and 100 Gy treatments. Plants exposed to 80 and 100 Gy treatments accumulated the maximum amounts of rosmarinic acid and caffeic acid, respectively. Furthermore, the analysis of S. hortensis essential oil revealed that gamma radiation significantly alters its components. Carvacrol, α-Pinene, and α-Thujene levels raised dramatically compared to control with an increase in gamma irradiation dose from 20 to 100 Gy, while Thymol and α-Terpinene levels lowered., Conclusions: Our results showed that treatment of Summer Savory seeds with gamma radiation at 80 and 100 Gy doses could significantly be raised biochemical parameters and secondary metabolites accumulation under field conditions. The current study showed that gamma irradiation could be used as a pre-sowing elicitor to improve the quantity and quality of phytochemicals in Summer Savory.

Satureja hortensis L. is an annual herbaceous plant of the Lamiaceae Lindl. family. S. hortensis L., related to thyme and rosemary, is used as spice and traditional medicinal herb in Europe. Mainly due to the polyphenols contained in S. hortensis L., this plant exhibits multiple biological effects. However, therapeutic effects on cells, including skin tumors, have not yet been studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the composition and the resulting antioxidant as well as biological properties [on melanocytes and melanoma cells] of summer, savory growing in botanical garden of Vytautas Magnus University in middle Lithuania climatic conditions, collected during various phases of vegetation. It has been shown that the budding phase alcohol extract of this plant contains the largest amounts of polyphenols, including rutin and rosemary acid, which promote the radical scavenging activity and antioxidant properties. In contrast, the extract from the massive flowering phase already at a concentration of 12.5 µg/mL reduces the survival of melanoma cells to 60% with 90% melanocytes survival. In addition, extracts from beginning of flowering and end of flowering at a concentration of 25 µg/mL, containing significantly less rutin and rosmarinic acid, in combination with irradiation of cells with UVB, significantly increased the lipid peroxidation process, particularly in melanoma cells. These data indicate the possibility of using extracts from S. hortensis L. to modulate/differentiate the metabolism of normal and tumor skin cells.

Satureja hortensis L. presents an increased interest due to its chemical composition, abundant in monoterpenes, aglyconic and glycosylates flavonoids, and phenolic acids, leading to important biological activity. The present study compared the biological activity of volatile oil (VO) and total hydro-alcoholic extract (TE) of Satureja hortensis L. in terms of: i) antioxidant activity; ii) antimicrobial activity; and iii) viability, migration and proliferation on two healthy cell lines (keratinocytes-HaCaT and fibroblasts-1BR3) and two melanoma cell lines (human-A375 and murine-B164A5). Antioxidant activity of VO and TE showed maximal values around 72%. Antimicrobial screening highlighted the inhibitory capacity of VO against all seven tested bacteria strains, with the most pronounced effect against S. aureus and C. albicans , while TE exerted only a slight activity against three bacteria strains. VO showed greater efficacy than TE on both tumor cell lines (A375 and B164A5), the activity of the compounds was higher when low concentrations were used (5, 10 and 25 µM) while at high concentrations (50 and 100 µM) the percentages of viability were increased.

Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-agar biocomposite film was developed by a solvent casting method and the effects of summer savory essential oil (SSEO) at 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% v/v on antimicrobial, microstructural, mechanical and optical properties as well as water sensitivity of the films were studied. Results showed that incorporation of SSEO into the biocomposite film developed active films with good growth inhibition activity against Gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus, B. cereus and L. monocytogenes) and less powerfully against Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli). Addition of the SSEO at 1.0 and 1.5% increased microstructural heterogeneity of the films and hence significantly (p < 0.05) increased water vapor permeability of the films while reducing their tensile strength. In contrast, mechanical flexibility and surface hydrophobicity of the films were significantly (p < 0.05) improved as a function of SSEO addition. The active films showed substantially lower swelling ratio compared to the CMC-agar film when 1.5% SSEO was added, but the transparency of the films was reduced. Finally, the results showed that SSEO can act as an antimicrobial agent in combination with CMC-agar film. However, it modifies properties of the film depending on the applied concentration., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This study investigated the effects of summer savory ( Satureja hortensis L.) extract (SSE) on growth, plasma constituents, immune response, and gut microbiota of broiler chickens. A total of 300 day-old broiler chicks were randomly assigned to five dietary treatments containing five replicates of 12 birds each. The treatments consisted of a controldiet without feed additive and experimental diets supplemented with four levels of SSE (100, 200, 300, and 400 mg/kg, respectively). Results showed no significant effect of SSE supplementation on broiler body weight gain ( p > 0.05), but feed conversion ratio was significantly ( p < 0.05) improved when fed 400 mg/kg SSE compared to control. Most of the blood parameters and immune response criteria studied were improved ( p < 0.05) by SSE supplementation. There was no dietary effect on Lactobacilli count ( p > 0.05); conversely, Escherichia coli count was reduced and the Lactobacilli/ E. coli ratio improved with SSE ( p < 0.05). Based on our findings, it was concluded that supplementation of the diet with SSE up to 400 mg/kg sustained growth traits and improved the feed efficiency and health status of broilers. However, more research is needed on this subject in order to better understand the mode of action of the extract used.

Antibacterial properties and chemical characterization of the essential oils from summer savory (Satureja hortensis) extracted by microwave-assisted hydrodistillation (MAHD) were compared with those of the essential oils extracted using the traditional hydrodistillation (HD) method. While MAHD at 660 W required half as much time as HD needed, similar antibacterial efficacies were found from the essential oils obtained by the two extraction methods on two food pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, a gram positive bacterium, and Escherchia coli, a gram negative bacterium). Also, as it was the case with the essential oils extracted by HD, that of MAHD indicated greater influence on S. aureus than on E. coli. The compositions of the extracted essential oils were also studied using GC-MS analysis. The same components with negligible differences in their quantities were found in the extracted essential oils using the two methods outlined above. Overall, to reduce the extraction time, MAHD can be applied at higher microwave levels without any compromise in the antibacterial properties of the essential oils extracted.