USE OF THREE ESSENTIAL OILS TO THE CONTROL OF MICROORGANISMS CAUSING BIODETERIORATION IN DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE

BORREGO S.; VIVAR I.; LAVIN P.; BATTISTONI P.; GÓMEZ DE SARAVIA S.; GUIAMET P.

La Habana

Congreso; QUIMICUBA?2012. VIII CONGRESO INTERNACIONAL DE QUÍMICA, INGENIERÍA QUÍMICA y BIOQUIMICA; 2012

Essential oils (EO) are complex natural mixtures of volatile secondary metabolites. The activities of essential oils cover a broad spectrum. Various essential oils produce pharmacological effects; others are biocides against a broad range of organisms such as bacteria and fungi. However, there are only few reports about the use of the EO to control the biodeterioration of cultural heritage. The aims of this study were to determine the antimicrobial activity of Origanum vulgare L., Syzygium aromaticum L.and Thymus vulgaris L. against strains of bacteria and fungi associated with the biodeterioration of documentary heritage and to valuate the possible effects that cause these oils to paper. The EO from plants were obtained by steam distillation. The antimicrobial activity was analyzed using the agar diffusion method against strains isolated from Historical Archive of the Museum of La Plata, Historical Research Department of Geodesy and Cartography and National Archive of Cuba. Also, the effect of these products on paper quality, on pH and the copper number were analyzed. It was found that EO showed a strong bactericidal and fungicidal activity when they were applied at 25% against Bacillus sp., Bacillus cereus, Bacillus thuringiensis, Bacillus polimixa, Enterobacter agglomerans, Streptomyces sp., Staphylococcus sp., Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus fumigatus, Penicillium sp. and Fusarium sp. A lower activity was detected for Pseudomonas fluorescens. As for its effect on paper, the tested products did not significantly affect the pH and the copper number of the papers studied before and after accelerated ageing.