synergistic effects of nettle essential oil combined with antibiotics against selected bacterial strains

With the increase in antibiotic-resistant bacteria and the lack of new antibiotics being brought on to market, alternative strategies need to be found to cope with infections resulting from drug-resistant bacteria. the synergistic effects between antibiotics and essential oils offer a promising approach to the current growing problem of antibiotic resistance. antibiotic resistance is a major threat to global public health. this situation is making existing antibiotics less and less effective, and as a result, there s a growing need for new strategies to fight bacteria. essential oils are emerging as a potential solution in this field, thanks to their broad-spectrum antimicrobial effects and diverse mechanisms of action. with the continual emergence of new bacterial strains resistant to antibiotics, the efficacy of antibiotics has dropped, and antibiotic resistance has become a global public health issue: when infections become resistant to first-line medicines, more expensive therapies must be used. this study investigated the synergistic antibacterial effects of nettle essential oil combined with three antibiotics (erythromycin 15µg, oxolinic acid 2µg, netilmicin 30 µg) against bacterial strains bacillus cereus bc6830, klebsiella pneumoniae atcc 70063 and proteus mirabilis atcc 12453. disk diffusion assays measured inhibition zone diameters in millimeters for antibiotics alone and in combination with 10 µl of nettle essential oil. results showed varying degrees of enhancement in antibacterial activity, with the highest synergy observed for netilmicin 30 and oxolinic acid against k. pneumoniae. these findings support further research on essential oil-antibiotic combinations as alternative strategies to combat antibiotic resistance. in veterinary medicine, nettle essential oil exhibits great promise as an adjuvant for antibiotics, especially against gram-negative infections (klebsiella, proteus). combining antibiotics with essential oils offers a promising strategy to reduce antibiotic doses, side effects, and resistance development, though most research remains in vitro. more in vivo and clinical studies are needed to confirm their safety and effectiveness before clinical use.