{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,14]],"date-time":"2026-10-14T19:48:07Z","timestamp":1792007287975,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,11]],"date-time":"2025-02-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1739232000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Antibiotics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Essential oils of Thymbra spicata subsp. spicata are known for their rich phytochemical content and bioactive properties. This study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial, anti-biofilm and anti-quorum sensing, as well as the cytotoxic activities of T. spicata subsp. spicata essential oils (TS-EO1 and TS-EO2) obtained from two different localities in T\u00fcrkiye, along with a detailed chemical composition analysis. Methods: TS-EO1 and TS-EO2 were obtained by the hydrodistillation method and analyzed using Gas Chromatography\u2014Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) to determine their phytochemical profiles. Antimicrobial activities were assessed against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and fungal strains were assessed using the broth microdilution method. Anti-biofilm and anti-quorum sensing activities were evaluated using Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 12472, respectively. Cytotoxic properties were tested on four cell lines (A549, MCF-7, U87MG, and L929) using the MTT assay. Results: Both essential oil samples were rich in carvacrol (54.3% and 54.1%), followed by p-cymene and \u03b3-terpinene. The essential oils exhibited significant antimicrobial activity, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus (6.25 mg\/mL) and Candida parapsilosis (0.20 mg\/mL). Sub-MIC concentrations significantly inhibited biofilm formation and quorum sensing. Both samples showed moderate cytotoxic properties against human cancer cell lines, particularly A549 (IC50: 116.3 and 134.4 \u03bcg\/mL, respectively). Conclusions: This study showed that T. spicata subsp. spicata essential oils have significant antimicrobial, anti-biofilm, and anti-quorum sensing properties against various bacteria and fungi, along with moderate cytotoxic effects, indicating their medicinal and pharmaceutical potentials. This is the first study which revealed anti-biofilm and anti-quorum sensing properties of T. spicata essential oils to our knowledge.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/antibiotics14020181","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,11]],"date-time":"2025-02-11T10:53:22Z","timestamp":1739271202000},"page":"181","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Antimicrobial, Anti-Biofilm, Anti-Quorum Sensing and Cytotoxic Activities of Thymbra spicata L. subsp. spicata Essential Oils"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7434-3175","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Timur Hakan","family":"Barak","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University, Istanbul 34752, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3760-1996","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mujde","family":"Eryilmaz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University, Istanbul 34752, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6943-8965","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Basar","family":"Karaca","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ankara University, Ankara 06100, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4683-855X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Huseyin","family":"Servi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Istanbul Yeni Y\u00fczy\u0131l University, Istanbul 34010, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7976-7057","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Simge","family":"Kara Ertekin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Istanbul Yeni Y\u00fczy\u0131l University, Istanbul 34010, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7287-9817","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Muhittin","family":"Dinc","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mathematic and Science Education, Ahmet Kele\u015fo\u011flu Faculty of Education, Necmettin Erbakan University, Konya 42090, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1439-8502","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hatice","family":"Ustuner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Akdeniz University, Antalya 07058, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2260","DOI":"10.1021\/jf0732253","article-title":"Effect of maturation on the composition and biological activity of the essential oil of a commercially important Satureja species from Turkey: Satureja cuneifolia Ten. 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