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Introduction
Not long ago, we thought we had conquered infectious disease.The scourge of mankind had been vanquished by the discovery ofantibiotics.“…we can look forward with confidence to a considerable degreeof freedom from infectious diseases at a time not too far in the future.Indeed…it seems reasonable to anticipate that within some measurabletime…all the major infections will have disappeared….” [1].The discovery of antibiotics revolutionized medicine; the increasingemergence of antibiotic resistance threatens to return medicine tothe pre-antibiotic era. Recently, the US Centers for Disease Control sounded an alarm regarding emerging antibiotic resistance and thethreat to public health.“CRE are nightmare bacteria. They pose a triple threat. First, they’re resistant to all or nearly all antibiotics, even some of our last-resort drugs.Second, they have high mortality rates. They kill up to half of peoplewho get serious infections with them. And third, they can spread their resistance to other bacteria.” [2].To combat emerging antibiotic resistance and the rise of ‘superbugs’,new drugs are needed. However, research and development for new antimicrobial agents is lagging far behind the rate at which bacteria are developing resistance. As a result, many infectious diseases once easily cured have now become increasingly difficult to treat. So where are new antimicrobials to be found? Perhaps by looking to the past, wemay discover significant science behind the ‘myths’ of ancient remedies;science which could lead to the development of new antibiotics and other drugs.
Summary
Since antiquity, essential oils and their constituents have been used to treat a large number of human illnesses. Today, essential oils are used in alternative and holistic medicine for similar purposes and administered orally, topically or via aromatherapy. A growing number of scientific investigators have begun the process of elucidating the specific mechanism(s) of action of essential oils and components.Emerging evidence has shown that many essential oils have both nonspecific and specific mechanisms of action which varies based on the relative abundance and chemical composition of the components.Elucidation of the mechanism of action of these compounds may enable identification of new antibiotic targets and exploitation of novel biochemical pathways; pathways not currently targeted by existing antibiotics. Additionally, combination of existing drugs with essential oils and/or components may provide an alternative approach to combat emerging drug resistance. Since antibiotic resistance is currently outpacing research and development to find new drugs, humanity is facing a return to the ‘pre-antibiotic era’. Perhaps the remedies of the past combined with scientific study may provide the antibiotics of tomorrow.