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Objectives: Escherichia coli and Salmonella Typhimurium are frequent causes of foodborne illness affecting many people annually. In order to develop natural antimicrobial agents against these microorganisms, thyme oil (TO) was considered as active antibacterial ingredient. TO contains various bioactive compounds that exhibit antimicrobial properties. To increase the antibacterial effects and stability of thyme oil, two promising carrier systems, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) and chitosan nanoparticles have been fabricated in this study. Methods: Nanoparticles were made using natural-based lipids and polymers by a probe sonication method. They were characterized using infrared spectrometry (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), particle size, cytotoxicity, etc. Antibacterial effects of TO, thyme oil loaded in SLN (TO-SLN) and thyme oil loaded in chitosan nanoparticle (TO-CH) was evaluated against E. coli and S. typhimurium using Minimum inhibitory/bactericidal concentrations (MIC/MBC) determination. Encapsulation efficiency (EE%) and drug release profile were also studied in vitro. Results: TEM analysis revealed spherical/ovoid-shaped particles with clear edges. TO-SLN had an average size of 42.47nm, while TO-CH had an average size of 144.8nm. The Encapsulation efficiency of TO–CH and TO–SLN nanoparticles were about 81.6±1% and 73.4±1%, respectively. Results indicated 92% cumulative release in TO-CH in comparison with 88% in TO-SLN in 72 h. MIC against E. coli and S. typhimurium for TO-CH, TO-SLN, and pure TO were 4 and 1.5 μg/mL, 60 and 40 μg/mL, and 180–150 μg/mL, respectively. Conclusion: Nanoencapsulation of thyme oil significantly potentiated its antimicrobial effects. TO-CH exhibited a significantly higher antibacterial effect compared to TO-SLN (6-fold) and pure thyme oil (more than 10-fold). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Staphylococcus aureus with current universal importance represents a main carrier of emerging antimicrobial resistance determinatives of global health concerns that have developed drug resistance mechanisms to the various available antibiotics. On the other hand, due to the antimicrobial potential of Nigella Sativa oil (NSO), it was hypothesized that incorporation of nano-carriers (NS-SLN and NS-chitosan (CH) nanoparticles) can enhance its antibacterial effects. This study evaluated the physico-chemical and antibacterial characteristics of NS-SLN and NS-CH. TEM images revealed a round shape with clear edges for both nanoparticles, and the average sizes were reported to be 196.4 and 446.6 nm for NS-SLN and NS-CH, respectively. The zeta potential and encapsulation efficiency were −28.9 and 59.4 mV and 73.22% and 88% for NS-SLN and NS-CH, respectively. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations for NSO, NS-SLN, and NS-CH against S. aureus were 480, 200, and 80 µg/mL, respectively. The results confirm significantly stronger antibacterial influences of NSO when loaded into chitosan nanoparticles as a potential candidate for nano-delivery of antimicrobial agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]