Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology

1-4

Authors: Sunita D

Clean water that is free of toxic chemicals and pathogens is essential to human health. In countries such as India, 80% of the diseases are due to bacterial contamination of drinking water. The World Health Organization recommended that any water intended for drinking should contain fecal and total coliform counts of 0, in any 100 mL sample. When either of these groups of bacteria is encountered in a sample, immediate investigative action should be taken.The antibacterial potential of Magnesium oxide nanoparticle was detected by well diffusion method. Different concentrations of the nanoparticle were analysed by MIC and antibacterial effect. The MIC result reveals that MgO nanoparticle showed maximum inhibition at a concentration of 0.1 g/ml against E.coli. On comparing bactericidal activity it was observed that there was a continuous decrease in the number of colonies with the increase in concentration of MgO nanoparticle. Based on MIC results antibacterial activity of MgO nanoparticle was tested on water sample which was contaminated with E.coli culture. The growth of bacteria is completely inhibited when higher concentration (0.1 g /ml) of MgO nanoparticle was added in to 100 ml of water sample with 5ml of E.coli culture. Therefore from the above studies conducted, it can be inferred that the MgO nanoparticle has significant bactericidal activity, and overall may be more effective in the purification of water sample.

1-8

Authors: M Shailaja Raj

The anti-fungal activity of Zinc oxide and Titanium dioxide nano-particles was assessed by treating eight fungal cultures - Aspergillus niger, Trichophyton, Fonsecaea, Aspergillus flavus, Rhizopus oryzae, Fusarium, Ramichloridium schulzeri and Cladosporium, isolated from infected skin and dandruff flakes with the nanoparticles and analysing the extent of growth inhibition on agar and in broth media. The anti-fungal activity of these nano-particles was also compared to that of their respective bulk-particular forms, as well as to two commonly used anti-fungals, namely Amphotericin-B and Miconazole. The nano-particles were found to be more effective than the bulk-particles and almost equally efficient as Amphotericin-B, however Miconazole was found to be a better anti-fungal at an equal concentration. Zinc oxide nano-particles were better anti-fungals than Titanium dioxide, thus its anti-fungal activity at different concentrations was assessed to identify the concentration that shows similar anti-fungal activity as 3μg/ml of Miconazole. The reason for performing this study was to investigate the possibility of replacing presently used anti-fungal drugs with nano-particles in topical applications to treat mycosis.

1-6

Authors: Bhuvaneshwari J

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disorder characterized by high blood glucose levels, whose critical management alleviates multiple complications. Ill-managed diabetes often precedes incidence of dyslipidaemia and cardiac diseases. Mangifera indica L (Anacardiaceae) is a popular Indian horticultural tree also used medicinally. Hypoglycaemic and/or antidiabetic activity of leaf has been investigated in various models; however a comparative account of hypoglycaemic potential of mature and tender leaf is not reported; effect of leaves on carbohydrate digesting enzymes also is not reported. The present study is a preliminary report on comparative hypoglycaemic properties of aqueous methanolic extracts of mature and tender leaves of M indica L var. Totapuri in glucose loaded Wistar Albino rats and In-vitro glucosidase and  amylase inhibition bioassays. Significant hypoglycaemic activity was observed with both extracts in oral glucose tolerance test at 500mg/Kg b.wt. given orally one hour prior glucose loading. The extracts also showed inhibition of rat intestinal alpha glucosidase ,as well as porcine pancreatic alpha amylase with IC50: 21.03 and 35.73 for mature leaf and 27.16 and 22.01 for tender leaf extracts respectively. Thus the hypoglycaemic potential of mango leaves may be due to inhibition of carbohydrate digesting enzymes. Polyphenols, flavonoids and saponins identified in the extracts may be responsible for their hypoglycaemic activity.

1-5

Authors: Ibrahim TA

The antibacterial activities of the ethanol and methanol extracts of the dried seeds of Buchlozia coriacea against clinically significant bacterial isolates were determined using the agar well diffusion method. It showed Staphylococcus aureus was the most susceptible while Bacillus cereus was the least susceptible to the extracts with methanol extract been more effective against the clinical bacterial isolates. The extracts inhibited the growth of the bacterial isolates in a concentration dependant manner. The antifungal activity of the extracts on radial mycelical growth of the test fungi showed that Aspergillus niger was the most susceptible while Rhizopus sp was the least susceptible.

1-5

Authors: Abhilash Antony

Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) refers to retrograde flow of gastric contents to the upper aero-digestive tract which causes a variety of symptoms such as cough, hoarseness and asthma. In this study, we observed the changes seen in the microbiological flora in the pharyngeal wall mucosa in patientswith laryngopharyngeal reflux. A prospective study was conducted on 35 patients with Laryngopharyngeal reflux disease (LPRD) and 15 control patients in the ENT department in a tertiary care hospital. Swabs were taken from all the patients from the posterior pharyngeal wall and sent for microbiological analysis. Among the 35 patients with LPRD symptoms, 14.29% patients had normal pharyngeal flora, 21.88% isolates were of Non-fermenting Gram negative bacilli (Acinetobacter and Pseudomonas species), while 26.67% isolates were having Gram positive bacteria – (Staphylococcus aureus – 70% isolates, Enterococcus species – 20% isolates, coagulase negative Staphylococcus aureus – 10%). 50%of patients had isolates from the group of Enterobacteriaceae (E.coli – 12.5%, Klebsiella species – 37.50%, Citrobacter– 6.25%; Enterobacter species– 43.75%). The presence of bacterial flora in the posterior pharyngeal wall increases with the presence of laryngopharyngeal reflux disease with the predominant organism belonging to Enterobactericeae group.

1-5

Authors: Ibrahim TA

Phytochemicals composition and antibacterial activity of ethanol and water extract of Basellaalba and Helianthus annuus were studied against seven selected food borne bacterial pathogens using agar well diffusion and disc diffission methods. The phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of tannin, saponin, alkaloid, terpenoid, flavonoid, glycoside and phenolic compounds at varied composition in both aqueous and ethanol extract of the sample. Quantitatively phytochemical analysis of ethanolic extract of Basella alba showed alkaloid to be 3.24%, glycoside 1.34%, Saponin 2.45%, tannin 0.69%, terpenoids 0.04%, flavonoids 1.32% and phenolic compound 0.35% while Helianthus annuus showed alkaloid to be 1.23%, glycosides 0.04%, saponin 1.46%, flavonoids 0.03%, terpenoids 0.64% and phenolic compound o.34%.The aqeous and ethanolic extracts showed antibacterial activity against the test organisms.The agar well diffusion showed greater antibacterial activity in Basellaalba with better inhibition zones while the disc diffusion method has better activity in Helianthus annuus while the ethanol extracts of the plants showed stronger antibacterial activity than the water extracts. The present study re-established the antibacterial activities of the plants extracts which were attributed to the presence of phytochemicals.

1-6

Authors: Gursharan Singh

Due to an increasing sensibility and pressure of public and environmental agencies against the application of chemical based pesticides and their long lasting adverse effects on ecosystems and human health, has motivated the search for non hazardous alternatives. The most trustworthy substitute of chemical pesticides is considered as biocontrol agents. These agents could be formulations of bacteria, fungi, viruses, plant extracts or antibiotics. Inhibition or killing of harmful pests by biocontrol agents is environmentally safe and without creating any soil pollution. In last two decades, chitinases have received the attention of researchers for their anti-insects and antifungal biocontrol activities. This review critically focused on the successful studies (inside and outside of laboratory) has been done for the evaluation of biocontrol potential of chitinases from different sources.

1-4

Authors: Ibrahim TA

The bacterial density of mobile phones of volunteered technologies in the Food Science Department of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo was examined using standard bacteriological methods. A total of 174 colonies belonging to 10 genera were isolated from the mobile phones. The isolated genera were Staphylococcus sp(12(24.14), Klebsiella sp(23(13.22%), Enterococcus sp (08(4.59%). Bacillus sp(14(8.05%), Acinetobacter sp(13(7.47%), Corynebacterium sp(10(5.75%), Pseudomonas sp(24(13.79%), Proteus sp (13(7.47%), Serratia sp(10(5.75%) and E.coli (17(9.75%) when their morphological, gram staining and biochemical characteristics were compared with known taxa. This study showed that all mobile phones under consideration were infected by several microbes, most of which belong to the natural flora of the human body. This means that it is necessary to sterilize hands after contact with phones since it is a source of disease transmission.

1-7

Authors: Mojtaba Shakibaie

During last decades, study on the development of eco-friendly processes for the production of selenium nanoparticles (Se NPs) have received much attention due to hazardous effects of chemical compounds used for nanoparticle preparation. The present study was designed to screen actinomycete strains able to produce Se NPs. Among isolated bacterial strains, a terrestrial actinomycete strain which was tolerant to Se4+ ions (200 μg/ml of) was launched as Se NPs producer. Morphological and biochemical characteristics as well as 16S rDNA gene analysis of the selected strain introduced it as Streptomyces microflavus strain FSHJ31. The biologically synthesized Se NPs was then purified using n-Octyl alcohol/water extraction system and characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. Analysis of the particle size distribution pattern of biogenic Se NPs via laser light scattering method demonstrated the size range of 28–123 nm for Se NPs with the 48 nm NPs being the most frequent particles.

1-7

Authors: Shweta Dubey

Haemoglobinopathies are the disorder of hemoglobin and are the commonest gene disorder in the world. The report of WHO 2001, estimate that approximate 250 million people are heterozygous for these disorder and 2000 affected homozygous are born annually which is equally distributed between sickle cell diseases and thalassemia. In India the main form of the Haemoglobinopathies are Sickle cell Anaemia, Thalassemia, Haemoglobin E and Haemoglobin D. In Thalassemia, ß Thalassemia is very common in almost all population group of India. Alpha Thalassemia is less investigated in India which is mainly caused by point mutation, but a few study suggested the prevalence of α thalassemia type II in tribal population of Indian subcontinent. About 75persons belonging to Gond Tribe of Shahdol District of Madhya Pradesh in Central India were investigated for abnormal CBC profile, Haemoglobinopathies, α Thalassemia and ß Thalassemia. The method used for the study is Polymerase Chain Reaction. Sickle Cell Anaemia is the only abnormal haemoglobinopathy in the Tribe with the prevalence rate of 17%. ß Thalassemia was also low with the prevalence rate of 4%. α Thalassemia type II was very common i.e. 43% with mostly right ward deletion i.e., α3.7kbdeletion. The heterozygosity of alpha thalassemia type II reduced the haematologicalparameter slightly. Most of the 62% population was anaemic which was more pronounced among adults female and children, most of the people were mildly anaemic, but a sizeable proportion of adult female and children were moderately to severely anaemic.

1-3

Authors: Obidi Olayide Folashade

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence and concentrations of nickel in painted walls ofselectedrural residential buildings in Lagos, Nigeria with a view to determine the health risk of the occupants. Microorganisms isolated were Bacillus subtilis, B. brevis, B. megaterium, B.circulansand Enterobacter gergoviae withpopulation density ranging from1.0 -2.1 and 0.5 -1.9x 105cfu/g in the outdoor and indoor samples respectively. Nickel concentrationwas determined by the atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). Here wereported the detection of nickel in all samplesobtained from thirteen rural locations withconcentrations rangingfrom2.240 to 11.353 and from 1.241 to 13.309mg/lin outdoor and indoor samples respectively. Nickel concentrations showed the levels were above the maximum permissible limits recommended byUSEPA.The rural populace in these areas may be at risk.

1-12

Authors: Maskar AU

Brucellosis is one of the most common zoonotic diseases. HumanBrucellosis is primarily caused byB. melitensistransmitted by goats and sheep along with other potential routes for the spread of infection. Till date no definite therapy is available for the permanent treatment. Also vaccines, that are available, are not effective or non-specific to stop the spread of the infection. So there is a sure call for finding newer specific target molecules to design the newer specific therapeutic agent/s. After comparative metabolomic investigation inB. melitensis, we found enzyme Chorismate Synthase as the probable target molecule in Human Brucellosis. The present work includes generation of homology model of Chorismate Synthase forB. melitensisusing template fromH. pylori. The model was developed using satisfaction of spatial restraints approach implemented in Modeller 9v3 software. The model generated is a tetramer and consists of β-α-β Sandwich Fold in each monomer which is a signature fold of this enzyme family. After thorough structural evaluations, the model is found tobe quiet satisfactory and can surely be useful for further study to find out the potential therapeutic agent/s for Human Brucellosis. The model is available at Protein Model Data Base (PMDB ID PM0078183).

1-14

Authors: Mahesh Singh D anu

Typhoid fever is endemic in Asia Pacific Region, the Indian subcontinent, Africa, and South America.The protean manifestations of typhoid fever make this disease a true diagnostic challenge.Isolates from many parts of the world are now multidrug-resistant (MDR).There is a need for a quick and reliable diagnostic test for typhoid fever as an alternative to the Widal test. Collection and preservation of samples were done as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Widaltest was done by two quantitative methods i.e. slide and tube agglutination. About 80 and more than 80 titre was considered as significant titre. Typhifast test is immunochromatographic qualitative test assay performed in test device, which shows colour band when there is IgM in serum against coated antigen.Pink purplish coloured lines which confirm a positive test result. It was compared with positive control, which was also coated in respective test devices. Typhipoint is enzyme immunoassays (EIA) for the detection of IgM and IgG antibodies to the extracted protein of salmonella typhi in serum. Absence of this colored dot in the test region indicates negative test result. The results were compared with positive control, which was also coated in respectivetest devices. Total of 100 blood samples of suspected cases of typhoid fever was tested by three methods i.e. widal test, Typhifast &Typhipoit. Widal test in which, 48 samples (48%) were showed positive reaction with slide and tube agglutination method. Widal reaction was positive for TO & TH both in 62.5% of widal positive sample and 30% in suspected cases of typhoid fever&30% for TH in samples. In Widal positive reaction, maximum sample were from age group 21-40 years (58.33%).Out of 48 positive widal sample, 30 (62%) were males and 18 (38%) were females. Typhoid fever patients were outnumbered in MICU (22.2%).48 (48%) samples were positive and 52 (52%) were negative by widal. In typhifast 42 (42%) were positive and 58 (58%) were negative. In typhipoint 44 (44%) positive and 56 (56%) were negative. Out of100samples, 8 were used as positive and negative controls for typhipoint. 92 samples were used for testing. The result of the two methods i.e. Typhifast and Typhipoint were compared with the gold standard Widal test results. Typhipoint was more sensitive than both tests. It showed 7% sensitivity than typhifast. There was little difference among these three tests in positivity reaction point of view. Typhipoint was more sensitive than two tests

1-6

Authors: Ajay Kumar Kariyappa

Substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives such as 2-(chloromethyl)-5-heptadecyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4a), 2-benzyl-5-heptadecyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4b), 2-heptadecyl-5-phenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4c), 2-heptadecyl-5-styryl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4d), 2-(5-heptadecyl-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)phenol (4e), 2-heptadecyl-5-o-tolyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4f), 2-heptadecyl-5-(4-nitrophenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole (4g) and 4-(5-heptadecyl-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)benzenamine (4h) were subjected to antibacterial and antifungal activity assay by cup diffusion and poisoned food technique against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureusand three strains of seed borne toxigenic Fusarium verticilloidesisolated from maize (Zea maysL.) and paddy (Oryza sativaL.). F. verticilloides was confirmed by species specific primers VERT 1 and VERT 2 and fumonisin producing ability was confirmed by VERTF-1 and VERTF-2 using polymerase chain reaction. All the compounds were tested at different concentration (25 to 100 ppm). The results revealed that all eight oxadiazoles completely inhibited all the strains of toxigenic F. verticilloidesat 100 ppm indicating Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC). 4b recorded highly significant antibacterial activity against E. coliwhere as it was 4f against Staph. aureus. The study is successful in reporting the antimicrobial activity of the oxadiazoles and its possible application in management of seed borne fumonisin producing fungi and also bacterial infection in human

1-12

Authors: Sanchita Chaturvedi

Fungi are known to produce proteases of different kind. The dermatphytic fungal strains were isolated from human skin tissues for extra cellular proteases efficacy.The present study deals with purification, estimation and comparison of extracellular proteases from five fungal species. (Fusarium sp., Curvularia sp. , Fumigatus Sp. , Aspergillus Sp. andMucor Sp.).All the five fungal strains showed good amount of extra cellular protease activity in terms of unit total protein content. By testing all the crude extracts for enzyme activity, Fusarium sp. was found to show the highest activity whereas Mucor sp. showed the lowest.The study supports the notion that fungi can be a good source of extracellular enzymes especially protea