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In this study, antimicrobial activities of the essential oils obtained by using the hydrodistillation method from some lamiaceous plants--Mentha longifolia (L.) Hudson ssp. longifolia, M. longifolia (L.) Hudson ssp. typhoides (Briq.) Harley var. typhoides, Mentha pulegium L., Salvia fruticosa Miller, Salvia tomentosa Miller, Calamintha nepeta (L.) Savi ssp. glandulosa (Req.) P.W. Ball, Nepeta cadmea Boiss., Lavandula stoechas L. ssp. stoechas, and Ziziphora tenuior L.--were determined by using the disc diffusion method. The plants used in this study were collected from different localities of Muğla Province, Turkey. All the essential oils isolated from the plants were very effective against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, which included multiple-antibiotic resistant strains, except Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and Pseudomonas fluorescens MU 87. The essential oils of the plant species, except S. tomentosa and S. fruticosa, were very effective against Candida albicans. The antimicrobial activities varied depending on the species, subspecies, or variety. In fact, essential oils of some plants belonging to the same taxa but collected from different localities showed different levels of antimicrobial activities.

Antibacterial and antifungal activities of acetone and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) extracts of 45 different propolis samples from the Mugla province of Turkey were investigated. Antimicrobial activity of propolis varied depending on propolis sample, dosage of propolis, and the extraction solvents for all test microorganisms. Antimicrobial activity of all propolis samples increased with increasing dosage without reaching a plateau at the highest dosage tested. Except for Brucella melitensis, the DMSO extracts of all propolis samples were more active than the acetone extracts of the same samples. For B. melitensis, the acetone extracts of all propolis samples showed greater activity. The most sensitive microorganism to propolis was Shigella sonnei in the gram-negative group and Streptococcus mutans in the gram-positive group. The least sensitive microorganism was Candida albicans. A control test run with standard antibiotics revealed that propolis samples from the Mugla province of Turkey has a similar or greater inhibitory effect on S. mutans, Salmonella typhi, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, S. sonnei, and C. albicans growth.

Because of their high antioxidant activity, J. excelsa, J. oxycedrus subsp. oxycedrus, J. sabina and J. phoenicia might be used in the food industry as preservative agents or extension of the shelf-life of raw and processed foods. Since the hexane extracts of J. oxycedrus subsp. oxycedrus and J. foetidissima demonstrated significant anticholinesterase activity they should be considered as a potential source for anticholinesterase agents.