摘要：AbstractObjectivesThe antimicrobial resistance of food poisoning strains is considered a public health burden contributing to high mortality and morbidity rates globally. Furthermore, the severe side effects of chemotherapy represent a serious issue which necessitates finding safe sources for anticancer agents for adjuvant therapy to decrease harmful impact of chemotherapeutic drugs. Hence, the current study is conducted to evaluate the antibacterial efficiency ofElettaria cardamomumagainst multidrug resistant strains causing food poisoning outbreaks.MethodsThe resistance profile of the tested food poisoning bacterial pathogens was evaluated using disk diffusion assay. Moreover, the antibacterial efficiency ofE. cardamomumsolvent extracts was achieved using disk diffusion assay to determine the efficiency of these extracts against multidrug resistant strains. Cytotoxicity assay was achieved to assess the antiproliferative efficiency ofElettaria cardamomumsolvent extracts against MCF7 breast cancer cell line.ResultsMethicillin resistant-Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) strain exhibited resistance to all tested antibiotics except norfloxacin whileE. colistrain showed susceptibility to all antibiotics used in the study. Furthermore,P. aeruginosashowed resistance to cefotaxime, trimethoprim + sulfamethoxazole, cefixime, ceftriaxone and cefaclor antibiotics while it was sensitive to norfloxacin antibiotic. In addition,S. aureusstrain expressed resistance to cefatziodime, cefixime and ceftriaxone antibiotics. The ethanolic extract ofElettaria cardamomumshowed the highest antibacterial activity against the concerned food poisoning bacterial strains recording zone diameters ranged from 11.91 ± 0.17 mm to 26.81 ± 0.24 mm. The ethanolic extract ofElettaria cardamomumshowed MIC values of 0.25 and 0.50 mg/disc againstS. aureusandE. colistrains recording inhibition zone diameters of 16.83 ± 0.14 and 12.34 ± 0.18 mm respectively. GC–MS analysis revealed that α-terpinyl acetate, 1,8-cineole and β‑pinene were the main phytochemical components of theElettaria cardamomumethanolic extract recording percentages of 41.24%, 28.14% and 5.98% respectively. In conclusion, the potent efficiency ofE. cardamomumethanolic extract against the tested food poisoning strains supports utilizing these extracts in bioformulation of safe and effective food preservatives avoiding side effects of chemical preservatives and controlling the problem of antibiotic resistance.
