The absence of laboratory diagnosis and poor notification to the Epidemiology Unit were the major drawbacks noted.

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<p class="abstract"><strong>Background:</strong> Grape seeds are proposed to have antimicrobial activity, antioxidant effect and various other benefits to mankind. A study was done to assess the antibacterial effect of grape seed extract against common clinical isolates and drug resistant pathogenic strains.</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Methods:</strong> Grape seed extract prepared was investigated for its antibacterial effect against 65 bacterial isolates obtained from clinical specimens by agar well diffusion assay and the results were compared with routinely used antibiotics namely, Gentamicin for the common clinical isolates, Vancomycin for MRSA strains and Amikacin for ESBL organisms respectively.</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Results:</strong> Grape seed extract produced moderate zone of inhibition ranging between 11-15 mm among the 35 test common clinical isolates namely <em>Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella </em>sp<em> </em>and<em> Pseudomonas aeruginosa</em>.  <em>E.coli </em>showed the highest susceptibility with zone ranging from 12-14 mm with increasing concentration of the extract starting from2 mg/ml to the highest being 20 mg/ml. Among the 30 drug resistant pathogenic strains like MRSA and ESBL producing organisms, the grape seed extract was found to be effective against 3 out of the 10 of MRSA and 2 out of the 10 of ESBL-<em>E.coli</em> at the highest concentration of 20 mg/ml. However, ESBL producing <em>Klebsiella </em>species were found to be resistant even to the highest concentration of the extract.  </p><p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> The results provide evidence that the grape seed extract could be a potential antibacterial agent and this effect can further be made evident with improved methodologies.</p>

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Background: Interactive lecture is a student centred teaching technique incorporating, multimodal strategies to create more engaging classroom settings. In our medical college, traditional lecture approach has been the core teaching method. So, we intended bringing in a change to passive way of learning by introducing first interactive lecture in Microbiology. The objective of our study was to evaluate perception of students on the usefulness of interactive lecture over traditional lecture. Methods: A session on Laboratory Diagnosis of Hepatitis B virus was selected. Anonymity of the responses was ensured to the students. Students were given overview about the study design and purpose of the study. Those who are willing to participate were enrolled for the study. A total of 112 students given consent were included. It was planned to provide traditional lecture on the selected topic followed by interactive lecture on the same topic for all 112 students. At the end of both the session, cross sectional survey was conducted using a pre validated questionnaire to assess the usefulness of interactive lecture given. Responses were to be provided on five point Likert scale with a score of 1 = strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neutral, 4 = Agree and 5= strongly agree. Frequencies of responses were analyzed by merging SDA & DA (Strongly disagree and Disagree) and SA & A (Strongly agree and Agree) as two groups. Percentage of responses was compared. Results: In general, 96% of them perceived interactive lecture was useful and reported that they strongly recommend it to their friends who weren"t there. Out of 112 students, 94(84%) reported interactive lecture was interesting when compared to traditional format. Conclusion: When planned meticulously interactive teaching can definitely can save time and energy. Our study emphasizes the need of interactive lecture in core curriculum for better understanding of the subject.