Benzyl isothiocyanate, a major component from the roots of Salvadora persica is highly active against Gram-negative bacteria

Plants produce a number of antimicrobial substances and the roots of the shrub Salvadora persica have been demonstrated to possess antimicrobial activity. Sticks from the roots of S. persica, Miswak sticks, have been used for centuries as a traditional method of cleaning teeth. Diverging reports on the chemical nature and antimicrobial repertoire of the chewing sticks from S. persica led us to explore its antibacterial properties against a panel of pathogenic or commensal bacteria and to identify the antibacterial component/s by methodical chemical characterization. S. persica root essential oil was prepared by steam distillation and solid-phase microextraction was used to sample volatiles released from fresh root. The active compound was identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and antibacterial assays. The antibacterial compound was isolated using medium-pressure liquid chromatography. Transmission electron microscopy was used to visualize the effect on bacterial cells. The main antibacterial component of both S. persica root extracts and volatiles was benzyl isothiocyanate. Root extracts as well as commercial synthetic benzyl isothiocyanate exhibited rapid and strong bactericidal effect against oral pathogens involved in periodontal disease as well as against other Gram-negative bacteria, while Gram-positive bacteria mainly displayed growth inhibition or remained unaffected. The short exposure needed to obtain bactericidal effect implies that the chewing sticks and the essential oil may have a specific role in treatment of periodontal disease in reducing Gram-negative periodontal pathogens. Our results indicate the need for further investigation into the mechanism of the specific killing of Gram-negative bacteria by S. persica root stick extracts and its active component benzyl isothiocyanate.     

Bactericidal substances in cytoplasm of leucocytes. An attempt to separate lysozyme by gel filtration

A substance with a bactericidal effect onEscherichia coli was isolated from the cytoplasm of polymorphonuclear leucocytes. It consists of a mixture of different active substances and therefore a gel filtration using s Sephadex G-100 column was used to separate lysozyme from other active substances. The extract was separated by this procedure into five peaks, out of which peak I. possesed a significant bactericidal activity, peak II. and III. had a weak one, whereas the lysozyme activity was present in peak III., IV. and V.     

Über die Bildung von Bakterienhemmstoffen durch Cosmarium impressulum

1. An already published test method for detecting bactericidal substances in paper chromatograms was further improved. 2. In cultures of Cosmarium impressulum free from bacteria, two bactericidal substances were found in the ether extracts from the algae and two others in the extracts of the culture medium. The are active against some or all bacteria testes (Serratia marcescens, Pseudomonas fluorescens; Aerobacter aerogenes or Bacillus pumilus). 3. If the culture medium of Cosmarium or another desmidiale was inoculated with the test bacteria, a clear bactericidal effect was never observed. 4. Because the activity of the bactericidal substances of Cosmarium is only small and the formation is not constant, it is concluded that the water-soluble bactericidal substances of the alga are not the cause that epiphytic bacteria do not grow normally on Cosmarium.     

Distribution of microorganisms lysing Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus in the system of sewage waters

The regularities of lytic microorganisms distribution in domestic sewage have been studied. A reproduction of mesophilic gram-negative bacteria producing lytic substances against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus has been shown to take place at mechanical cleaning stages. In the primary sediment trap the number and the relative content of microorganisms lysing P. aeruginosa at mean temperature and the number of microorganisms lysing S. aureus are maximum. The number of gram-positive sporogenous bacteria lysing P. aeruginosa under conditions close to thermophilic does not change considerably till the secondary sediment trap and remains comparatively high. Certain stages of purification can be regarded as a source of microorganisms producing lytic substances.     

Effect of some antibiotics and chemotherapeutic preparations on Leptospira in vitro]

It was shown in vitro with the method of successive serial dilutions that polymyxin M, thilan, streptomycin, neomycin, sodium levomycetin succinate, brilliant green, tripaphlavin, azidin, aminoacrichin, and novarsenol had the most pronounced bactericidal effect on Leptospira. Combination of the antibiotics or the chemotherapeutics apart from azidin and tripaphlavin did not increase the bactericidal effect as compared to their use alone. The clinical and collection strains of Leptospira had the same sensitivity to the substances tested. The above drugs should be tested on animals with leptospirosis.     

Bactericidal microparticles decorated by an antimicrobial peptide for the easy disinfection of sensitive aqueous solutions

Silica and paramagnetic silica microparticles are surface-modified by an antibacterial macromolecular coating. For this, a hydrophilic copolymer brush based on oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylates is grown on the particle surface by surface-initiated ATRP. Then, Magainin-I, a natural antimicrobial peptide, is grafted onto the hydroxyl groups of the brush through a heterolinker. The grafting of the peptide is evidenced by fluorescence microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Moreover, culturability and viability assays performed in the presence of the magainin-grafted particles prove their bactericidal properties. The rapid recovery of the bactericidal particles based on paramagnetic silica and suspended in solution is shown under magnetization. Such particles offer the advantage to treat efficiently various sensitive aqueous solutions while avoiding any dissemination of bactericidal substances in the environment. As a consequence, they are of a great interest for various applications in medical, cosmetic, or biomedical fields.     

Variability of the lytic susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to human sera.

The bactericidal activity of human sera for Neisseria gonorhoeae was studied. Sera were obtained from a group of patients with gonococcal infections who had acute urethritis, acute pelvic inflammatory disease, disseminated gonococcal infection, or who were asymptomatic carriers. The homologous and heterologous strains were tested with these sera. The development of serum bactericidal antibodies was not a universal event. With few exceptions, the susceptibility of a particular strain to human antibody and complement appeared to be largely independent of the particular person from whom the serum was obtained and was due instead to antigenic properties intrinsic to each individual strain. Lipopolysaccharide appeared to be the predominant antigen against which bactericidal antibodies were directed. The principal bactericidal antibody class was IgM. Blocking antibodies were not found to account for the lack of lytic activity. A correlation of bactericidal antibodies with protection from developing gonococcal infection could not be demonstrated in three pateints.     

Antibacterial properties of a new isoflavonoid from Erythrina poeppigiana against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

A new isoflavonoid, together with four known isoflavonoids, was isolated from the roots of Erythrina poeppigiana. The chemical structure was determined by extensive spectroscopic studies, and then its antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was investigated. The new isoflavonoid was identified as 3,9-dihyroxy-10-gamma,gamma-dimethylallyl-6a,11a-dehydropterocarpan (compound 1). Compound 1 inhibited bacterial growth most potently of the five isolates, and had a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 125 microg/ml against thirteen MRSA strains. Inhibitory activity was based on bactericidal action and viable cell number reduced by approximately 1/10,000 after 4 h incubation with compound 1. Despite intense bactericidal action against MRSA, compound 1 never resulted in leakage of 260 nm-absorbing substances from bacterial cells. Compound 1 (12.5 microg/ml) completely inhibited incorporation of radio-labeled thymidine, uridine and leucine into MRSA cells. Although glucose incorporation was also markedly inhibited by the compound, the amount of glucose incorporated by bacterial cells increased gradually with incubation time. These findings suggest that compound 1 exhibits anti-MRSA activity by interfering with incorporation of metabolites and nutrients into bacterial cells or by affecting the nucleic acids of MRSA cells. Furthermore, this new compound could be a potent phytotherapeutic agent for treating MRSA infections.     

A comparative study of the bactericidal activity of horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) hemolymph and vertebrate serum

This paper describes a partially heat-labile, naturally occurring bactericidal factor in cell-free hemolymph preparations obtained from Limulus polyphemus. This bactericidal activity has been shown to be directed against two Gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, whereas it had no effect on the Gram-positive bacteria tested, Micrococcus lysodeikticus and Staphylococcus aureus. Maximal bactericidal activity of this factor was observed at 30°C and pH 6.0. Since complement and antibody are required for antimicrobial activity in vertebrate sera, the activity of this factor in the presence of various complement inhibitors was assayed. The bactericidal activity of Limulus hemolymph is abolished by treatment with endotoxin; however, other anticomplementary substances were without effect. Limulus amebocyte lysate is known to contain protein which may be precipitated by endotoxin; it is possible that the reduction of bactericidal activity produced by endotoxin treatment may be caused by the denaturation of a bactericidal protein moiety produced by the hemocytes.     

硅纳米针阵列抗菌材料的制备及其抗菌性能研究

本文以简易经济的金属辅助化学刻蚀技术制备了具有高效杀菌性能的硅纳米抗菌材料并研究其形貌与结构,以大肠杆菌和金黄色葡萄球菌为代表菌株,研究了纳米针抗菌材料的抗菌活性。实验证明,该抗菌材料对在其表面培养3 h的大肠杆菌和金黄色葡萄球菌的杀菌效率分别为85.12%,76.40%,表明该材料对革兰氏阳性和革兰氏阴性菌均有高的杀菌效果,所制备的抗菌材料有望为医疗卫生系统在抵抗细菌污染方面提供解决方案。     

STUDIES ON THE USE OF BACTERICIDAL RUBBER IN MILKING MACHINE CLUSTERS

SUMMARY: Bactericidal rubber containing tetramethylthiuram disulphide was used in milking machine clusters cleaned by immersion in caustic soda on four farms, and by ordinary chemical sterilization on eight farms. Some reduction in the bacterial content of clusters was brought about by the bactericidal rubber, but high bacterial counts were not prevented, particularly where cleaning was inadequate. 'Fatigue splitting' of bactericidal rubber liners occurred after two to six weeks use.     

A STUDY OF THE BACTERICIDAL ACTION OF ULTRA VIOLET LIGHT : III. THE ABSORPTION OF ULTRA VIOLET LIGHT BY BACTERIA

The simple conclusion of former investigators that the shorter the wave length of ultra violet light the greater the bactericidal action is in error. A study with measured monochromatic energy reveals a characteristic curve of bactericidal effectiveness with a striking maximum between 260 and 270 m.µ. The reciprocal of this abiotic energy curve suggests its close relation to specific light absorption by some single essential substance in the cell. Methods are described for determining the absorption curve, or absorption coefficients, of intact bacteria. These curves for S. aureus and B. coli have important points of similarity and of difference with the reciprocals of the curves of bactericidal incident energy, and point the way in a further search for the specific substance, or substances, involved in the lethal reaction.     

Effect of extracts obtained from olive oil mill waste waters on Bacillus megaterium ATCC 33085

n -Propanol was the most effective solvent for extracting antibacterial substances from olive oil mill waste water ('alpechines'). Several phenolics were detected in propanol extracts that had bactericidal effects on Bacillus megaterium ATCC 33085, inhibiting sporulation and germination at 5.6 mmol/l total phenolics (expressed as syringic acid). The biological effect was increased in the presence of high glucose and NaCl concentrations and after β-glucosidase hydrolysis.     

Separation and purification of a potent bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein and a closely associated phospholipase A2 from rabbit polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Observations on their relationship.

Two antibacterial proteins from rabbit polymorphonuclear leukocytes, a potent bactericidal cationic protein that increases the envelope permeability of susceptible gram-negative bacteria and a phospholipase A2, have been purified to near homogeneity by ion exchange, gel filtration, and hydrophobic interaction chromatography. The apparently noncatalytic bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein has an approximate molecular weight of 50,000 and is isoelectric at pH 9.5 to 10.0. The molecular properties, including amino acid composition, and the antibacterial potency and specificity of this rabbit leukocyte protein and of the bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein from human granulocytes that we have recently purified (J. Biol. Chem. 253, 2664-2672, 1978) are closely similar. Both proteins kill several strains of Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. Rough strains are more sensitive than smooth strains. All gram-positive bacterial species tested are insensitive to high concentrations of either rabbit or human protein. The phospholipase A2, purified by hydrophobic interaction chromatography on phenyl-Sepharose, ran as a single band on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with an apparent molecular weight of 14,000 and had a specific enzymatic activity comparable to that of purified phospholipases A2 from other sources. Separation of the phospholipase A2 from the bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein has no noticeable effect on the bactericidal and permeability-increasing activities of the purified bactericidal protein, but removes the ability of the phospholipase A2 to hydrolyze the phospholipids of intact Escherichia coli. Upon recombination of the phospholipase A2 with the bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein, the phospholipase A2 regains its activity toward the phospholipids of intact E. coli suggesting that these two antibacterial leukocyte proteins act in concert.     

Characterization of micro-organisms isolated from dairy industry after cleaning and fogging disinfection with alkyl amine and peracetic acid

AIMS: To characterize micro-organisms isolated from Norwegian dairy production plants after cleaning and fogging disinfection with alkyl amine/peracetic acid and to indicate reasons for survival. METHODS AND RESULTS: Microbial samples were collected from five dairy plants after cleaning and fogging disinfection. Isolates from two of these production plants, which used fogging with alkylamino acetate (plant A), and peracetic acid (plant B), were chosen for further characterization. The sequence of the 16S ribosomal DNA, fatty acid analysis and biochemical characteristics were used to identify isolates. Three isolates identified as Rhodococcus erythropolis, Methylobacterium rhodesianum and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa were isolated from plant A and one Sphingomonas sp. and two M. extorquens from plant B. Different patterns of resistance to seven disinfectants in a bactericidal suspension test and variable degree of attachment to stainless steel were found. The strains with higher disinfectant resistance showed lower degree of attachment than susceptible strains. CONCLUSIONS: The study identifies and characterizes micro-organisms present after cleaning and fogging disinfection. Both surface attachment and resistance were shown as possible reasons for the presence of the isolates after cleaning and disinfection. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: These results contribute to the awareness of disinfectant resistance as well as attachment as mechanisms of survival in dairy industry. It also strengthens the argument of frequent alternation of disinfectants in the food processing industry to avoid the establishment of resistant house strains.     

黄粉甲幼虫抗菌物质的诱导及其抗菌活性

采用饥饿法、紫外线照射法和针刺法处理黄粉甲Tenebriomolitor 6龄幼虫后均能诱导其 产生抗菌物质,收集的血淋巴上清液对真菌有抑制作用,对细菌无抑制作用;经热处理后的血 淋巴上清液则对细菌有抑制作用,而对真菌无抑制作用。SDS-PAGE检测结果发现,与未诱导的 对照相比经诱导的黄粉甲幼虫血淋巴中,原有的一类大分子蛋白质如分子量分别为97kD、44 kD和37 kD左右的蛋白质缺失;而ESI-MS分析结果显示诱导后比诱导前黄粉甲幼虫血淋巴中有 小分子物质产生,推测可能是此类缺失蛋白质分解为小分子量的抗菌肽,从而表现出抗菌活性 。     

Evaluation of the properties of potassium ferrate used for water purification by luminescence bioassay

Characteristics of four natural water samples from urban and rural areas and the efficiency of a new purifying agent, potassium ferrate K₂FeO₄, were studied by bacterial luminescence bioassay for 30 minutes. It was revealed that two samples of water from the urban areas are toxic, while the other two samples (one from urban and one from rural environment) are nontoxic. Numerous data obtained on the increase in toxicity index with time allow reasonable conclusions to be made about the chemical nature of substances present in the test water samples. Toxic natural water samples were likely to contain heavy metals and were well purified using potassium ferrate, including via their adsorption. In nontoxic natural water samples, toxic complexes with organic compounds present in water could form at the addition of potassium ferrate. The obtained data call for further studying the properties of potassium ferrate complexes with organic compounds. Bacterial luminescence bioassay is a promising method for the rapid assessment of properties of various water sources (their integral toxicity and presumable chemical composition) and new reagents for their purification (effective concentrations, bactericidal properties, and mechanisms of interacting with heavy metals and organic substances in water).     

Occurrence and structural organization of the exocrine glands in the legs of ants

Apart from their obvious locomotory function and hence the presence of muscle fibres, ant legs are also endowed with an astonishing variety of exocrine glands. This paper reviews the presence and structural variety of the 20 different glands that have so far been found in the legs of ants. Four of these glands are described for the first time in this paper. Glands have been described in the three leg pairs, although considerable differences may exist. Glands occur in the various leg segments. A number of glands, especially those located in the hindlegs, may have a function in the production of trail pheromones. Other possible functions that have been reported deal with antenna cleaning, production of lubricant substances and sex pheromones.     

Identification and isolation of a bactericidal domain in chicken egg white lysozyme

Chicken egg white lysozyme exhibits antimicrobial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Fractionation of clostripain-digested lysozyme yielded a pentadecapeptide with antimicrobial activity but without muramidase activity. The peptide was isolated and its sequence found to be I-V-S-D-G-N-G-M-N-A-W-V-A-W-R (amino acids 98-112 of chicken egg white lysozyme). A synthesized peptide of identical sequence had the same bactericidal activity as the natural peptide. Replacement of Trp 108 with tyrosine significantly reduced the antibacterial capacity of the peptide. By replacement of Trp 111 with tyrosine the antibacterial activity was lost. Replacement of Asn 106 with the positively charged arginine strongly increased the antibacterial capacity of I-V-S-D-G-N-G-M-N-A-W-V-A-W-R. The peptide I-V-S-D-G-N-G-M consisting of the eight amino acids of the N-terminal side had no bactericidal properties, whereas the peptide N-A-W-V-A-W-R of the C-terminal side retained some bactericidal activity. Replacement of asparagine 106 by arginine (R-A-W-V-A-W-R) increased the bactericidal activity considerably. The D enantiomer of R-A-W-V-A-W-R was as active as the L form against five of the tested bacteria, but substantially less active against Serratia marcescens, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus lentus. For these bacterial species some stereospecific complementarity between receptor structures of the bacteria and the peptide can be assumed.