Vol. 11, Issue 4, Part E (2025)

Background: Globally, Dental caries comes under chronic illness oral health condition which results in demineralization of the hard tissues that is complex, dynamic, and biofilm-mediated in nature. Herbal medicine is the currently in vogue to cure or prevent caries. This study compares and evaluates the antimicrobial efficacy of essential oils of Origanum vulgare (Karpooravalli) and Chrysopogon zizanioides (Vetiver) against Lactobacillus casei, rhamnosus, Streptococcus mutans, and Prevotella intermedia.
Material and Method: Bacterial strains were seeded onto petri plates consisting 20 ml of medium composed of nutritional agar during course of a 24-hour culture. Wells were cut and the concentration of samples- Origanum vulgare (group I) and Chrysopogon zizanioides (group II) (100 µg/ml) were incorporated. Following, plates were incubated for a full day at 37°C. The diameter of the inhibition zone that developed around wells was used to measure the antibacterial activity after 24 and 48 hours. Graph Pad Prism 6.0- software (USA) was used to calculate the figures.
Results: Origanum vulgare was effective against Lactobacillus casei rhamnosus at 24 hours, Streptococcus mutans, and Prevotella intermedia. Chrysopogon zizanioides was active against Prevotella intermedia at 24 hours. However, both the essential oils were significantly effective against the microorganism at 48 hours.
Conclusion: This study proves that Origanum vulgare (Karpooravalli) and Chrysopogon zizanioides (Vetiver) were effective against Lactobacillus casei, rhamnosus, Streptococcus mutans, and Prevotella intermedia.