The antibacterial effect of volatile compounds in millets and cereal by‐products was investigated. Hexane extracts of rice bran (RB), corn cob (CC), green (GM), and yellow millets (YM) showed antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli ATCC 35150, Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579, Helicobacter pylori MH179991, and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 13150 with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranging from 2.5 to 5 mg/ml. Gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry analysis revealed a total of 101 compounds in all extracts. Furthermore, the mode of action of the major bioactive compounds in extracts was tested against Lipoprotein X complex (LpxC) and four chained structured binding protein of Bacterial type II topoisomerase (4PLB) in silico. Docking analysis showed moderate to potent inhibition against receptor proteins (4PLB and LpxC) with a docking score of −7.52, −8.89, and −9.89 Kcal/mol for 3,5‐dimethylbenzaldehyde, cyclododecane, di‐tert‐butylbenzene, respectively. GM, YM, CC, and RB hexane extracts possess antibacterial potential that could be developed as antimicrobial agents.
Practical Applications
Cereals and their by‐products represent an abundant and low‐cost resource for value‐added functional food. They may be considered alternative new sources of antimicrobial agents to tackle a challenge of antimicrobial‐resistance. Findings from this work provide insight into how volatile bioactive compounds inhibit bacterial pathogens by targeting 4PLB and LpxC as evident in the computational study. Further studies to confirm the antibacterial potency of these compounds in vivo is warranted.