Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) combined with GC and GC/MS was used for analysis of the wood volatiles of Norway spruce (Picea abies L.), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), and European larch (Larix decidua Mill.). More than 160 compounds were extracted and identified from spruce, pine, and larch stemwood. Differences in the quantitative and qualitative composition of the volatiles from the different conifer species were found. The volatile composition was specific for each species. Only small differences in the volatiles from different wood tissues, i.e. sapwood and heartwood, were found.

Because of the bacterial drug resistance development, it is reasonable to investigate chemical compounds capable of preventing the spread of resistance to mupirocin (MUP), commonly used in staphylococcal eradication. The objective of the study was to verify the influence of essential oil compounds (EOCs) on the antibacterial activity of MUP against mupirocin-susceptible (MupS) and induced low-level mupirocin-resistant (MupRL) methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains. The following parameters were examined: MRSA^MupS and MRSA^MupRL susceptibility to EOCs (1,8-cineole, eugenol, carvacrol, linalool, (-)-menthone, linalyl acetate, and trans-anethole), the bacterial cell size distribution, and chemical composition by the use of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopies. The MRSA^MupS and MRSA^MupRL strains were susceptible to all tested EOCs. 1,8-cineole and (-)-menthone showed synergistic activity against MRSA^MupS in combination with mupirocin, whereas 1,8-cineole exhibited synergistic activity against MRSA^MupRL as well. In-depth analysis showed that both MRSA^MupS and MRSA^MupRL displayed similar distributions of the bacterial cell size. The FTIR and Raman spectra of the MRSA^MupS and MRSA^MupRL strains showed differences in some regions. New bands in the MRSA^MupRL Raman spectrum were observed. It was concluded that the use of 1,8-cineole in combination with mupirocin can increase the mupirocin activity against the MRSA^MupS and MRSA^MupRL strains.