Essential oils from commercial and wild Patchouli modulate Group A Streptococcal biofilms

• EOs (Patchouli oil) from the genus Pogostemon exhibit anti-biofilm activity against pharyngitis causing Group A Streptococci.
• Both the traditional P.cablin and the unexplored wild type P.heyneanus Benth., exhibit anti-biofilm activity.
• FT-IR spectroscopy indicates that both the EOs disrupted the fatty acid membrane of the biofilms.

Streptococcus pyogenes (Group A Streptococcus [GAS]) is an important human pathogen that causes several superficial infections and invasive diseases. The ability of GAS to form biofilms, renders the pathogen resistant to several antimicrobials resulting in antibiotic treatment failure. As essential oils (EOs) from plants have been promising sources of anti-biofilm agents, the present study shows that EOs from the genus Pogostemon exhibit anti-biofilm activity against pharyngitis causing GAS. The biofilm inhibition ability of the EOs varied depending upon the serotype of GAS, which was evident from confocal microscopy. Fourier transfer infra red (FT-IR) spectroscopy indicated that both the EOs disrupted the fatty acid membrane of the biofilms in all the serotypes. Overall, this study forms a first report on the anti-biofilm activity of the EOs of Pogostemon species and this can be a novel natural resource to combat drug resistant pathogenic biofilms.