Phytochemical Analysis and Antioxidant, Antibacterial, and Antifungal Effects of Essential Oil of Black Caraway ( L.) Seeds against Drug-Resistant Clinically Pathogenic Microorganisms.

(NS) is a plant that has long been utilized in traditional medicine as a treatment for certain diseases. The aim of this work was to valorize the essential oil (EO) of this species by phytochemical analysis and antimicrobial and antioxidant evaluation. EO was extracted by hydrodistillation from the seeds of (EO-NS). Phytochemical content of EO-NS was evaluated by use of gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). Antioxidant ability was determined by use of three assays: 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), ferric reducing power (FRAP), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) relative to two synthetic antioxidants: BHT and quercetin. Antimicrobial effect was evaluated against four clinically important bacterial strains (, ATCC 6633; , K12; , DSM 6333; and , ATCC 29906) and against four fungal strains (, ATCC 10231; , MTCC 282; , MTCC 9606; and , MTCC 9913). Fifteen constituents that accounted for the majority of the mass of the EO-NS were identified and quantified by use of GC-MSMS. The main component was -cymene (37.82%), followed by carvacrol (17.68%), -pinene (10.09%), trans-sabinene hydrate (9.90%), and 4-terpineol (7.15%). EO-NS exhibited significant antioxidant activity with IC, EC, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of 0.017 ± 0.0002, 0.1196 ± 0.012, and 114.059 ± 0.97 mg EAA/g, respectively. Additionally, EO-NS exhibited promising antibacterial activity on all strains under investigation, especially on K12 resulting in inhibition diameter of 38.67 ± 0.58 mm and a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 1.34 ± 0.00 g/mL. Also, EO-NS had significant antifungal efficacy, with a percentage of inhibition of 67.45 ± 2.31% and MIC of 2.69 ± 0.00 g/mL against , MTCC 9913 and with a diameter of inhibition 42 ± 0.00 mm and MIC of 0.67 ± 0.00 g/mL against . To minimize development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, EO-NS can be utilized as a natural, alternative to synthetic antibiotics and antioxidants to treat free radicals implicated in microbial infection-related inflammatory reactions.