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Cow dung, an excreta of bovine animal, is a cheap and easily available bioresource on our planet. Many traditional uses of cow dung such as burning as fuel, mosquito repellent and as cleansing agent are already known in India. Cow dung harbours a diverse group of microorganisms that may be beneficial to humans due to their ability to produce a range of metabolites. Along with the production of novel chemicals, many cow dung microorganisms have shown natural ability to increase soil fertility through phosphate solubilisation. Nowadays, there is an increasing research interest in developing the applications of cow dung microorganisms for biofuel production and management of environmental pollutants. This review focuses on recent findings being made on cow dung that could be harnessed for usage in different areas such as medicine, agriculture and industry.

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Fruit juices are important commodities in the global market providing vast possibilities for new value added products to meet consumer demand for convenience, nutrition, and health. Fruit juices are spoiled primarily due to proliferation of acid tolerant and osmophilic microflora. There is also risk of food borne microbial infections which is associated with the consumption of fruit juices. In order to reduce the incidence of outbreaks, fruit juices are preserved by various techniques. Thermal pasteurization is used commercially by fruit juice industries for the preservation of fruit juices but results in losses of essential nutrients and changes in physicochemical and organoleptic properties. Nonthermal pasteurization methods such as high hydrostatic pressure, pulsed electric field, and ultrasound and irradiations have also been employed in fruit juices to overcome the negative effects of thermal pasteurization. Some of these techniques have already been commercialized. Some are still in research or pilot scale. Apart from these emerging techniques, preservatives from natural sources have also shown considerable promise for use in some food products. In this review article, spoilage, pathogenic microflora, and food borne outbreaks associated with fruit juices of last two decades are given in one section. In other sections various prevention methods to control the growth of spoilage and pathogenic microflora to increase the shelf life of fruit juices are discussed.

Fruit juices are popular drinks as they contain antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that are essential for human being and play important role in the prevention of heart diseases, cancer, and diabetes. They contain essential nutrients which support the growth of acid tolerant bacteria, yeasts, and moulds. In the present study, we have conducted a microbiological examination of freshly prepared juices (sweet lime, orange, and carrot) by serial dilution agar plate technique. A total of 30 juice samples were examined for their microbiological quality. Twenty-five microbial species including 9 bacterial isolates, 5 yeast isolates, and 11 mould isolates were isolated from juices. Yeasts and moulds were the main cause of spoilage of juices. Aspergillus flavus and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa were observed in the maximum number of juice samples. Among bacteria Bacillus cereus and Serratia were dominant. Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were detected in few samples. Candida sp., Curvularia, Colletotrichum, and Acetobacter were observed only in citrus juice samples. Alternaria, Aspergillus terreus, A. niger, Cladosporium, and Fusarium were also observed in tested juice samples. Some of the microorganisms detected in these juice samples can cause disease in human beings, so there is need for some guidelines that can improve the quality of fruit juices.

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Organic extract obtained from the T. arjuna bark and leaves may be used to treat the bacterial ear pathogens especially S. aureus, which has shown greater inhibition zones than the herbal drops, however, we still need more detailed studies as in vivo testing and pharmacokinetics properties for their therapeutic utility in treating ear infections.

Essential oils from fresh leaves, flowers and dried fruits of Vitex negundo were obtained by hydrodistillation. Using Soxhlet extractor five successive extracts from dried and powdered leaves were also taken. The chemical constituents of essential oil of leaves, flowers and dried fruits were analyzed by GC-FID and GC/MS techniques. Main constituents identified in leaves oil were δ-guaiene, carryophyllene epoxide and ethyl-hexadecenoate; in flowers oil - α-selinene, germacren-4-ol, carryophyllene epoxide and (E)-nerolidol while fruit oil showed β-selinene, α-cedrene, germacrene D and hexadecanoic acid as the main constituents. β-Caryophyllene was only the constituent identified as common to all three oils. α-Guaiene and guaia-3,7-diene were identified as common constituents in leaf and dried fruit oil while leaf and flower oils showed p -cymene, valencene, caryophyllene epoxide and (E)-nerolidol as common constituent. All the essential oils and successive extracts were evaluated for antibacterial potential against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterial strains. Each of the essential oils and extracts were found to give promising results against B. subtilis and E. coli. Ethyl acetate and ethanol extracts showed prominent antibacterial activity against all the tested strains. Fruits and leaves oil were found to be most active against E. coli and S. aureus, respectively. Only flowers oil was found to be active against P. aeruginosa.