Work

Enhanced in vitro propagation of Thymus bovei via nanoparticles and analysis of antibacterial activity

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Thymus bovei is one of the most well-known medicinal plants in Jordan. Due to the growing demand and limited availability of planting material, it is important to establish an effective protocol for the in vitro propagation of T. bmg/ovei. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to develop a novel in vitro propagation protocol for T. bovei by examining the influence of nanoparticles on its propagation. Microshoots were cultivated in Murashige and Skoog medium (MS) with benzylaminopurine (BA), or in MS medium without any growth regulators, then both treatments were supplemented with different concentrations of nanoparticles: silica celite (SiO2), copper oxide (CuO), and silica−copper oxide (SiO2CuO), for a five-week growth period. The maximum multiplication rate of T. bovei (7.3 shoots/explants) was achieved from microshoots proliferated on MS medium augmented with 1.5 to 2.0 mg L−1 BA and 5.0 mg L−1 SiO2CuO. T. bovei extracts were derived from different plant tissue sources; plants from the field (ex vitro plants), plants cultured in vitro on MS medium (in vitro plants), plants cultured in vitro on MS medium with nanoparticles (nano-plant), and plants cultured in vitro on MS medium with nanoparticles and BA hormone (nano-BA-plant) using acetone, ethanol, and methanol solvents. Then, the antibacterial activity of all plant extracts was tested against Salmonella sp., Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus aureus. Extracts of T. bovei from both ex vitro and in vitro sources exhibited strong antibacterial activity against all tested bacteria in a varied degree of inhibition zone diameter, ranging from 1.1 to 3.9 cm. The highest inhibition zone was recorded in Salmonella sp. in response to acetone and ethanol nano-plant extract (3.3 cm and 3.9 cm respectively), which was comparable to the positive control meropenem (3.4 cm). S. aureus and B. subitilis exhibited high sensitivity to all plant extracts. While antimicrobial activity against E. coli was reported in response to T. bovei extracts from acetone in vitro plants, methanol and ethanol nano-plant. Consequently, this study showed that SiO2 and CuO nanoparticles in MS media gave a positive effect on shoot growth of T. bovei in in vitro culture, and highlighted the antibacterial activity of ex vitro plants, in vitro T. bovei extracts.

Source: Brazilian Journal of Biology

DOI: 10.1590/1519-6984.308576