# Chemical Profiling, Ampicillin Interaction Patterns, and Exploratory Molecular Docking of Lauraceae Essential Oils

## TL;DR

This study investigates the chemical composition and antibiotic-potentiating effects of three Lauraceae essential oils, finding that Laurus nobilis oil most effectively enhances ampicillin activity against certain bacteria.

## Contribution

The study introduces new insights into the strain-dependent antibiotic-potentiating effects of Lauraceae essential oils and identifies key compounds with strong interactions to microbial protein targets.

## Key findings

- Laurus nobilis essential oil (LNEO) showed the strongest ampicillin-potentiating effects against specific bacteria.
- Molecular docking identified α-Citral and β-Citral as key compounds with strong interactions to microbial proteins.
- Chemical profiles varied among the oils, with LNEO containing high levels of monoterpene hydrocarbons.

## Abstract

This study compares the chemical composition, antimicrobial effects, and antibiotic-potentiating capacity of three Lauraceae essential oils (EO): Cryptocarya agathophylla (CAEO), Litsea cubeba (LCEO), and Laurus nobilis (LNEO). Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis revealed distinct chemotypes: CAEO and LCEO were dominated by oxygenated monoterpenes, while LNEO contained the highest levels of monoterpene hydrocarbons. Antibacterial testing against nine bacterial strains showed strain-dependent growth suppression trends, while true minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were reached only in selected cases. EO–ampicillin interactions were evaluated using MIC-based checkerboard criteria, whereas OD-derived inhibition parameters were used exclusively to describe sub-MIC potentiation trends. In combination assays, LNEO exhibited the most pronounced potentiating effects against Streptococcus pyogenes, Shigella flexneri, and Haemophilus influenzae, while CAEO and LCEO showed moderate or strain-dependent enhancement. Hierarchical clustering highlighted distinct oil- and strain-specific interaction profiles. Overall, although CAEO displayed stronger intrinsic antibacterial effects when tested alone, LNEO emerged as the most effective potentiator of ampicillin activity in a strain-dependent manner. The effects of the major compounds identified in the Lauraceae EO were assessed in silico against protein targets of some microorganisms using the AutoDock software version 4.2.6. The docking scores revealed binding affinities of the bioactive compounds towards Dpr protein (4.3–5.8 kcal/mol), DNA gyrase (4.7–7.1 kcal/mol), mono- diacylglycerol lipase (4.4–6.2 kcal/mol), CYP51 (5.8–8.0 kcal/mol), phage-encoded quorum sensing anti-activator (5.8–8.0 kcal/mol) and Chondroitin ABC lyase I (4.8–6.3 kcal/mol). Two (2) hit compounds (α-Citral, β-Citral) were finely defined by strong hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions with the bacterial and fungal protein targets, respectively.