Eco-Friendly Solution Based on Rosmarinus officinalis Hydro-Alcoholic Extract to Prevent Biodeterioration of Cultural Heritage Objects and Buildings

Abstract

Biodeterioration of cultural heritage is caused by different organisms capable of inducing complex alteration processes. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of Rosmarinus officinalis hydro-alcoholic extract to inhibit the growth of deteriogenic microbial strains. For this, the physico-chemical characterization of the vegetal extract by UHPLC–MS/MS, its antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity on a representative number of biodeteriogenic microbial strains, as well as the antioxidant activity determined by DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP, TEAC methods, were performed. The extract had a total phenol content of 15.62 ± 0.97 mg GAE/mL of which approximately 8.53% were flavonoids. The polyphenolic profile included carnosic acid, carnosol, rosmarinic acid and hesperidin as major components. The extract exhibited good and wide spectrum antimicrobial activity, with low MIC (minimal inhibitory concentration) values against fungal strains such as Aspergillus clavatus (MIC = 1.2 mg/mL) and bacterial strains such as Arthrobacter globiformis (MIC = 0.78 mg/mL) or Bacillus cereus (MIC = 1.56 mg/mL). The rosemary extract inhibited the adherence capacity to the inert substrate of Penicillium chrysogenum strains isolated from wooden objects or textiles and B. thuringiensis strains. A potential mechanism of R. officinalis antimicrobial activity could be represented by the release of nitric oxide (NO), a universal signalling molecule for stress management. Moreover, the treatment of microbial cultures with subinhibitory concentrations has modulated the production of microbial enzymes and organic acids involved in biodeterioration, with the effect depending on the studied microbial strain, isolation source and the tested soluble factor. This paper reports for the first time the potential of R. officinalis hydro-alcoholic extract for the development of eco-friendly solutions dedicated to the conservation/safeguarding of tangible cultural heritage.

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“…(2014) found that REO could efficiently inhibit the mycelial growth and spore germination of stone fungi ( Bipolaris spicifera and Epicoccum nigrum ) and woody layer fungi ( Aspergillus niger , A. ochraceus , Penicillium sp., and Trichoderma viride ) isolated from Serbian artifacts. The hydro‐alcoholic extract of rosemary also demonstrated the potential to prevent the biodeterioration of cultural heritage objects and buildings (Corbu et al., 2022). It was able to inhibit the most common deteriogenic genera found in churches and museum collections ( A. clavatus , MIC = 1.2 mg/mL), as well as the adherence capacity of P. chrysogenum strains isolated from wooden objects or textiles.…”

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“…Very few studies have been carried out in Romania regarding the antimicrobial efficiency of alternative solutions against deteriogenic microorganisms of tangible cultural heritage (Fierascu et al, 2014;Corbu et al, 2021Corbu et al, , 2022Gheorghe et al, 2021;Ilies et al, 2021). The wooden and stone churches from the 14 to 19 centuries are a recognizable representation of Romanian national history, serving as significant locations for the founding communities' secular as well as spiritual individual and communal gatherings (Gheorghe et al, 2021).…”