USE OF BIOACTIVE SUBSTANCES PRODUCED BY CANNABIS SATIVA L. FOR CLEANING BIOLOGICALLY CONTAMINATED MONUMENTS

Nature is a reservoir of bioactive substances called "secondary metabolites "that for many years has been considered cellular waste products or without a specific function. Secondary metabolites of Cannabis sativa L. were used against gram+ and gram- bacteria collected on historical bridge with the aim to realize an eco-sustainable bio-cleaning of the artifact. Tests in vitro on agar Petri dishes and calcareous stones contaminated were carried out. The extracts obtained from flowers and leaves of the plant showed some effects only against gram+ bacteria. These results, confirmed by image analysis, can change the methods of preservation of our cultural heritage and can give rise to a new process of knowledge re-addressing the Cannabis cultivation