The antibacterial activities of the phenolic EO compounds.

<p>(A) MRSA treated with 500 μg phenolic EO compounds, as assessed using direct contact agar diffusion tests. (B) The phenolic EO compounds were all tested at 500 μg. The microorganisms examined were <i>A</i>. <i>actinomycetemcomitans</i> (Aa), <i>S</i>. <i>mutans</i> (Sm), MRSA, and <i>E</i>. <i>coli</i>. Dotted line, the 0.6 cm diameter of the filter disc. * <i>P</i> < 0.05, ** <i>P</i> < 0.01, *** <i>P</i> < 0.001 compared with <i>A</i>. <i>a</i>. in each compound group; a, b, c, and d were <i>P</i> < 0.05, compare with <i>A</i>. <i>a</i>., <i>S</i>. <i>m</i>., MRSA, and <i>E</i>. <i>coli</i> in the hinokitiol group, respectively; e, <i>P</i> < 0.01 based on a comparison of the carvacrol and thymol groups.