Coconut Oil: Nature's Antimicrobial Agent

Excerpted from:

Rediscovering the Truth of the Coconut: Curative Properties of Coconut Oil
(Part 2 of 2)

March 13, 2014

By: STAR SCIENCE By Dr. Fabian M. Dayrit, Ph.D. (The Philippine Star)

http://www.ateneo.edu/news/ls-research-updates/rediscovering-truth-coconut-curative-properties-coconut-oil

[The following excerpt from Dr. Dayrit's research describes the first of three applications which illustrate the usefulness of coconut oil, including their scientific basis:  (1) antimicrobial, (2) anti-obesity, and (3) anti-cancer activities. The other two applications  are posted in this blog separately.]

Coconut Oil:  Nature's Antimicrobial Agent

In 1925, this small news item from the US Army and Navy General Hospital was published in Science journal: “Extensive experiments showed that common soaps were effective germicides in at least three types of infection, while soap made with coconut oil was markedly destructive to the organisms of typhoid fever.” 

This seemingly minor observation has grown into a major discovery regarding the antimicrobial properties of coconut oil. Extensive research in the 1970s by Prof. Jon Kabara at Michigan State University showed that lauric acid, which accounts for about half of the fatty acids in coconut oil, is the most potent among all fatty acids against gram-positive bacteria. A natural derivative of lauric acid, known as monolaurin, showed even more promising antibacterial activity.

However, what make lauric acid and monolaurin stand out against the usual antibiotics are its inherent safety (that is, very low toxicity in humans) and absence of microbial resistance which is common with antibiotics. Contrast this with antibiotics which have many undesirable side effects and which have been losing their efficacy due to the development of microbial resistance.

Coconut oil has been used to treat skin infection (including Candida albicans) and stomach ulcers (Heliobacter pylori), among others. Monolaurin has found use in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals and is now commonly used as a antimicrobial agent cum emulsifier in foods. In 2012, the World Dental Organization acknowledged that coconut oil is able to control bacteria that are responsible for tooth decay and recommended that coconut oil be regarded as a natural antibiotic which can be added as a main ingredient to oral healthcare products.

The scientific basis for the antimicrobial activity of lauric acid and monolaurin is attributed to at least two mechanisms. First, these two compounds have been shown to be most effective in disrupting the bacterial cell wall, in particular of gram-positive bacteria. This is consistent with the strongest surfactant effect of lauric acid. Second, lauric acid and monolaurin are able to interfere with the bacteria’s cell signalling process; this is believed to be the reason behind their ability to avoid bacterial resistance.

About the Author: Dr. Fabian M. Dayrit is a brilliant, multi-awarded scientist, who is Professor of Chemistry and former Dean of Ateneo University's School of Science and Engineering, among other distinguished positions he holds in the field of advanced science and technology research and development. He graduated cum laude from Ateneo with a degree in Chemistry, and received both his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Chemistry from Princeton University.