Inhibition of oregano essential oil and EDTA on Escherichia coli O157 : H7

Oregano essential oil with and without the addition of EDTA was tested agai nst Escherichia coli. The amount of essential oil, the addition of EDTA and the incubation temperature of the medium influenced the maximum growth rat e (mu (max)) and the lag phase of Escherichia coli O157:H7. In particular, the presence of oregano essential oil at the time of inoculation caused an increase in the lag phase, a decrease in the maximum growth rate and a redu ced final population size. The inhibitory effect on E. coli O157:H7 is prob ably associated only with the oregano essential oil since there was no anti bacterial action in broth samples inoculated with E, coli O157:H7 and suppl emented alone with EDTA. However, the combination of the two was found to i ncrease the inhibition dramatically. The minimum bacteriocidal concentratio n of oregano essential oil on cells of E, coli O157:H7 with and without EDT A affected the dense cellular materials and coagulated the cytoplasmic cons tituents, while the membrane structure tended to be irregular and rough.