Biological Activities of a-Pinene and β-Pinene Enantiomers

The antimicrobial activities of the isomers and enantiomers of pinene were evaluated against bacterial and fungal cells. The agar diffusion test showed that only the positive enantiomers of the α- and β-isomers of pinene were active. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal microbicidal concentration (MMC) of these monoterpenes were also determined, confirming that the positive enantiomers exhibited microbicidal activity against all fungi and bacteria tested with MICs ranging from 117 to 4,150 μg/mL. However, no antimicrobial activity was detected with the negative enantiomers up to 20 mg/mL. Time-kill curves showed that (+)-α-pinene and (+)-β-pinene were highly toxic to Candida albicans, killing…

• CD
  Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
• CN
  Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
• FC
  Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro