Jasmine (Jasminum sambac L., Oleaceae) oils

An ideal food preservative should ensure that foods and food products remain safe and unspoiled. Essential oil as whole or its components can contribute in the prevention of food spoilage. The potency of naturally occurring antimicrobial agents or essential oil from plants varies from species to species. To achieve the goal of preservation using natural compounds/extracts/essential oils can be done by combining essential oil or its components from various species. Since an ideal agent should ensure the complete protection from food spoilage, mode of action, synergistic and antagonistic effects of the agent have to be considered. In this chapter, the potential value of jasmine essential oil for its antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidant action is discussed for food preservation. Apart from other uses of jasmine essential oil, it has been found to be active against various gram-negative, gram-positive bacteria and fungi. This property of jasmine oil allows it to be used in food preservation. It also possesses antioxidant activity. The major components of jasmine essential oil are linalool, benzyl acetate, and benzyl benzoate. The linalool is a monoterpeniod alcohol also found in other antimicrobial essential oils. The antimicrobial activity of most terpenoids is linked to their functional groups, and it has been shown that the hydroxyl group of phenolic terpenoids and the presence of delocalized electrons are important for the antimicrobial activity. The mode of action of linalool is associated with membrane expansion, increased membrane fluidity and permeability, disturbance of membrane-embedded proteins, inhibition of respiration, and alteration of ion transport processes of microorganisms. Synergistic antimicrobial effect has been observed for linalool when combined with other groups of monoterpenoids, that is, phenolic monoterpenoid. Various regulatory bodies such as the European commission and US Food and Drug Administration have registered linalool to be a safe flavoring agent used for food products.