1. Introduction Nutraceuticals: a food that is potentially beneficial to one’s health Many cultures use natural products in remedies to fight illness We sought to determine if nutraceuticals have antimicrobial activity We sought to determine if fresh nutraceuticals were more antimicrobial than those that were processed Methods Obtained juice/oil from desired nutraceutical Using sterile technique, streaked plate with either E. coli or S. aureus Saturated whatman disc with juice or oil Placed on plate and incubated for 3 days at 37°C Measured zones of inhibition Results N=4 N=59 N=72 N=35 Discussion Abstract: We investigated the antimicrobial activity of certain nutraceuticals (a food product with potential health and medical benefits). Basic microbiology techniques were used to screen for antimicrobial activity of garlic, ginseng, jalapeno, habanero and chili peppers. We also tested for differences between fresh and processed samples. Fresh garlic was the only product to exhibit antimicrobial activity. Fresh garlic is the only food product that showed recordable zones of inhibition against E. coli and S. aureus Testing the Antimicrobial Properties of Nutraceuticals: A Preliminary Analysis Catherine Gould, Nick Kreutz, Dr. Gabriel Colbeck, Dr. Alastair Pringle We used garlic (upper left), ginseng (lower left) and peppers (upper right, lower right). Fresh garlic was compared to garlic oil and garlic pills (lower left). Fresh garlic vs E. coli. Large zones of inhibition Garlic pills, oil and Ginseng powder vs E. coli and S. aureus. No zones of inhibition Jalapeno, Habanero and Chili Pepper vs E. coli and S. aureus. No zones of inhibition Because fresh garlic was the only nutraceutical with zones of inhibition, we tested whether the antimicrobial effects diminished with time There was a noticeable difference between the results after garlic was exposed to oxygen for 1 minute and 2 hours. Garlic extract, oil, ginseng powder, habanero, jalapeno, and chili peppers did not produce any zones of inhibition, which indicates that they do not have any antimicrobial activity against E. coli and S. aureus. We were able to determine that fresh garlic was the only effective nutraceutical that we tested. Our further investigation of fresh garlic revealed that exposure to air somehow diminishes antimicrobial activity and makes it less effective as an antibiotic. Future directions: Other potential nutraceuticals (e.g. onions, ginger) Quantitative analysis of effects of time on antimicrobial properties of garlic Testing effects of nutraceuticals on probiotic species Acknowledgements We would like to thank Dr. Postier and Jeff Carroll for their assistance with this project. Thank you to Dr. Candace Chambers for thoughtful discussions on the development of this project. Acknowledgements We would like to thank Dr. Postier and Jeff Carroll for their assistance with this project. Thank you to Dr. Candace Chambers for thoughtful discussions on the development of this project. There was no difference between results after garlic was exposed for 1 and 5 minutes