Antimicrobial activity and chemical composition of Thymus vulgaris, Thymus zygis and Thymus hyemalis essential oils

The present study describes the volatile profile and antimicrobial activity of Thymus vulgaris (thymol chemotype), Thymus zygis subsp. gracilis (thymol and two linalool chemotypes) and Thymus hyemalis Lange (thymol, thymol/linalool and carvacrol chemotypes) essential oils extracted from seven plants cultivated in Murcia (Spain). Antimicrobial activities of the oils were evaluated for control of growth and survival of 10 pathogenic microorganisms.Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis allowed for the identification of between 42 and 51 compounds as main volatile constituents of each essential oil analyzed. Results presented here may suggest that the essential oils from T. hyemalis (thymol) followed by T. hyemalis (carvacrol), T. zygis (thymol) and T. vulgaris possesses antimicrobial properties, and are a potential source of antimicrobial ingredients for the food industry.