No abstract

The root endophytic fungus Piriformospora indica is a prime candidate to improve the growth and yield of plants. It also acts as a growth promoter and bioprotector, as well as combating environmental stress in a range of plant species. In the present investigation impact of a P. indica culture filtrate was studied on Helianthus annus Sun gold and H. annus Japanese gold varieties in the greenhouse. Treatment with the P. indica culture filtrate promoted overall growth and seed production of the plants. Moreover, the oil content of the seeds increased by 50% to 70% in these two varieties of H. annus plants. The possible reasons for these effects are discussed.

The mycorrhiza plant partnership is the basic, essential and integral part of plant survival and growth. In the present investigation we are reporting the effect of culture filtrate of Piriformospora indica, a growth promoter and bioprotector fungus on Aristolochia elegans Mart. The culture filtrate of the fungus increased overall growth, biomass, and active ingredient-aristolochic acid in the leaves of plants. In untreated control plants, the overall growth was reduced. P. indica culture filtrate application increased root number, root length, and root dry weightby 28%, 98%, and 123% respectivelyin plants of Aristolochia. Also stem height and shoot length was enhanced by 43% and 155% respectively.There was increase in number of leaves by 79% and length of leaves by 36%. The increase in total biomass was 136%. The improvement in content of aristolochic acid in leaves was between7.6% and 28.8%in treated plants as against untreated control plants

The sensitivity of pure cultures of Staphylococcus epidermidis and Klebsiella pneumoniae towards arsenic was studied with particular reference to biochemical changes induced by the heavy metal in these organisms. Arsenic strongly inhibited the growth and viability of both the organisms. Addition of arsenic prolonged the lag phase and this was found to be the concentration dependent phenomenon. The Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) determined was 200 ppm and 20 ppm in S. epidermidis and K. pneumoniae respectively that inhibited growth, synthesis of protein, DNA, RNA completely and activity of dehydrogenases of the TCA cycle. In S. epidermidis and K. pneumoniae, cell wall, membrane and cytoplasm 24.5%, 32.5%, 43% and 20%, 35%, 45% arsenic respectively got incorporated. As the activity of dehydrogenases was inhibited by arsenic, cells were incapable of oxidizing substrate. It resulted in limited supply of energy rich compounds such as ATP that affected the synthesis of macromolecules. Ultimately multiplication and growth of the organism got ceased.

No abstract

Microbial resistance to antimicrobials is spreading all over the world making it difficult to treat diseases effectively. This study aims to understand the mechanism of resistance towards the antimicrobials Ceftazidime, Moxifloxacin and Nalidixic acid, by using resistant Enterobacter spp. and sensitive Enterobacter spp. While there was complete inhibition of growth of sensitive Enterobacter spp. at 8 µg/ml Ceftazidime, 0.125 µg/ml of Moxifloxacin and 16 µg/ml of Nalidixic acid, resistant Enterobacter spp. even tolerated 256, 32 and 1536 µg/ml Ceftazidime, Moxifloxacin and Nalidixic acid respectively. Browthdilution method was used to determine the growth of organisms at different concentrations of antibacterial agents. Mechanism of resistance was found to be present in plasmid. Absence of Beta lactamase enzyme seems to be an important finding in this sudy. B. lactamase enzyme was checked with help of the acidometric and idometric method. Plasmid isolation and analysis was done by agarose gel electrophoresis. Successful curing of plasmid was carried out with 10% sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). When colonies after SDS treatment were tested, resistant strains were found which were later converted to sensitive ones. In this study, the resistant Enterobacter spp. executed resistance to three different classes of antimicrobials due to the resistance plasmid. The results obtained in this study support most of the previous study findings who contributed in this field. Therefore, it might be useful to recognize the resistance mechanism, and to determine the correct practicing of drug usage.

Antimicrobial resistance developed in several pathogens poses an increasing threat to human health across the world. No country can escape from the medical and economic impacts from this serious problem. Although the antibiotic resistance is not a new phenomenon, the current magnitude and speed with which it is developing is a cause for the global concern including in India. There are so many common diseases resulting from the microorganisms such as blood stream infections, urinary tract infections, post-operative wound infections and intra-abdominal infections. In this review the antimicrobial susceptibility or resistance of Enterobacter towards antimicrobial agents and heavy metals, viz. ceftazidime, moxifloxacin, nalidixic acid, sulfamethaxazole, and nickel and lead is discussed briefly along with other antimicrobials and heavy metals. The mechanisms behind the resistance by Enterobacter was analyzed and evaluated by many workers after using currently employed susceptibility testing methods for Enterobacter spp. There are some factors influencing mode of action of fluoroquinolones, quinolones and sulfamethaxazole. History, classification, identification, clinical features and treatment of infections and the epidemiology of antimicrobials (drugs and heavy metals) resistance by the Enterobacter spp. is included in this review. Now a day, antimicrobial resistance is common in hospitals where acquired infections can be perilous. This situation compels scientists to synthesize new antibiotics and treatment modalities. Enterobacter causes nosocomial infections. It is ubiquitous and can survive on skin and dry surfaces and replicate in contaminated fluids. Numerous outbreaks have been described. Various mechanisms have been adapted by microorganisms to resist toxicity of antimicrobials. Antimicrobial drugs may be rendered inactive or ineffective by the major ways such as barrier to antibiotic entry into the bacterial cell, prevention of the antibiotic from reaching the target, often by extrusion, alteration of the target of the drug and inactivation of the antibiotic by modification or destruction. In addition, bacteria may be able to bypass the metabolic pathway affected by a particular drug or may be able to overproduce an enzyme that is inhibited by the drug action, more than one mechanism may operate at any given time

The majority of the population in developing nations depends on agriculture. Agricultural biotechnology involves genetic modification and promises a number of important benefits, such as improving agricultural yields by increasing the resistance of crops to pests and facilitating them to flourish in harsh natural environments, improving the productivity of crops, and reducing pesticide use. Also, concerns have been raised about the potential negative impacts of genetic modification. To promote research and development in agricultural biotechnology, intellectual property rights (IPRs) are one of the primary tools. Based on the fact that high investment is required to develop new genetically modified (GM) technologies and products, stronger intellectual property protection is necessary to stimulate research and to allow recovery of investment. As international rules increasingly raise the level of intellectual property protection, there is rising concern about the potential negative impacts on the dissemination of knowledge and important products, further Research and Development, food security, and the conservation of biodiversity among other fundamental areas of public policy. It is thus an important policy challenge to determine application of laws, rules and legislations to agricultural biotechnology. IPRs are woven into innovations, enable entrepreneurship and they allow the leveraging of private resources for resolving the problems of hunger and poverty.