This study evaluated the antimicrobial activities [diffusion inhibition zone, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum bactericidal concentration], of heated ginseng extracts (ethanol and methanol). The extract yields, ginsenoside compositions, growth inhibitory effects against Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus and bacterial cell membrane potential changes, were also investigated. Methanol extracts of heated ginseng, showed higher antimicrobial activity than ethanol extracts. B. cereus was more easily inhibited than S. aureus. Ginseng heated at 100 °C for 2 and 16 h, showed maximum antimicrobial activity against B. cereus and S. aureus, respectively. In the growth inhibitory test, S. aureus and B. cereus were completely inhibited after 2 and 8 h culture at the MIC. The cell membrane potential decreased with increasing concentration of extract, indicating cell metabolism disruption. Ginsenosides Rg3, a potent antibacterial substance, which were absent in non-heated ginseng, were produced by heating ginseng at 100 °C for 4 and 8 h, respectively.
Keywords: Antimicrobial activity; Ethanol; Ginseng; Heat treatment; Methanol.