Antimicrobial activity of lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf.) essential oil against food-borne pathogens added to cream-filled cakes and pastries

Antimicrobial activity of the Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf. (lemongrass) essential oil against food-borne pathogens was determined to investigate its potential for reducing microbial population of cream-filled baked goods. The chemical composition of the oil was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC)/mass spectrometry (MS) and fifteen components were identified, where neral (39.0%), geranial (33.3%), limonene (5.8%) and geranyl acetate (4.2) were the most abundant constituents. Five main food-borne pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Bacillus cereus and Salmonella typhimurium were added to cream-filled cakes. Lemongrass essential oil showed potent antimicrobial activity against selected microorganisms. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for essential oil against all tested microorganisms were determined as 0.5 mu L/disc except for S. aureus, in which the oil was ineffective. By using 1 mu L/mL of essential oil, more than a 99.9% reduction in susceptible microorganisms was observed. After baking the cream-filled cake with four main susceptible pathogens manually added, after 72 hours of baking, no observable microorganism was observed. The same as in previous works, we suggested lemongrass essential oil as a safe natural preservative and food spoilage inhibitor. It can also reduce the risk of diseases associated with the consumption of contaminated products.