Synthesis, characterization, antibacterial and antifungal activities of 1-O-alkylglycerols

1- O -alkylglycerols are a class of natural existing lipids with broad biological activities. However, their use in food or agricultural fields remains to be investigated, especially for their antimicrobial activity. In this work, three 1- O -alkylglycerols, 1- O -octanylglycerol (C 8 Gly 1 ), 1- O -dodecylglycerol (C 12 Gly 1 ), and 1- O -hexadecylglycerol (C 16 Gly 1 ), were synthesized in the isolated yields of 71.3–89.8 % and characterized by 1 H NMR, 13 C NMR, FITR, mass spectra, and HPLC-ESLD. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of 1- O -alkylglycerols was determined to be 1.65 mmol/L (C 8 Gly 1 ), 0.33 mmol/L (C 12 Gly 1 ), and 0.23 mmol/L (C 16 Gly 1 ) using the pyrene method. C 12 Gly 1 and C 16 Gly 1 had similar surface tensions that are lower than C 8 Gly 1 . C 8 Gly 1 can form micelles in aqueous solution with excellent nano-dispersed uniformity and stability. Furthermore, C 8 Gly 1 and C 12 Gly 1 not only displayed good antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus , but they also inhibited the growth of Botryosphaeria dothidea , Monilia fructigena , and Phytophthora capsicum at 400 μg/mL. Thus, the C 8 Gly 1 and C 12 Gly 1 can serve as novel antimicrobial agents in food preservation.