Effect of Chlorella vulgaris as a biofertilizer on germination of tomato and cucumber seeds

Although inorganic fertilizers are known to raise environmental and health problems, the current agricultural practices are heavily dependent on the application of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. In this study, we examined the effect of Chlorella vulgaris strain on germination of tomato and cucumber seeds. Seeds were germinated in culture medium containing algal strain and grown for 3, 6, 9 and 12 days to study its effect on growth parameters. As results, C. vulgaris suspension increased the seed growth compared to those of the control (sterilized culture medium) of seed germination. The best treatments were 0.17 and 0.25 g/L of algal suspension for the root and shoot lengths of tomato and cucumber seeds, respectively

Natural preservatives of plant origin - antimicrobial action against food spoilage microorganisms in vitro and in foodstuffs

The in vitro antibacterial and antifungal effect of plant-derived compounds; berry juices, berry extracts and essential oils (EOs); were investigated on selected food-spoilage microorganisms. All compounds showed antimicrobial properties to various extents. In contrast to the insensitivity of yeast against berry juices and extracts, the Gram positive bacteria B. cereus and B. subtilis proved to be more sensitive to these agents than to EOs. The EO from tarragon showed the best antibacterial and antifungal effect, inhibiting the growth each investigated species. The combination of wild thyme and tarragon EO led to antagonism in the case of S. cerevisiae and B. subtilis whereas the combination of black currant and yarrow EO resulted in additive effect. All other combinations of the investigated EOs or the EO – bog bilberry combinations showed indifference. The EO of Chinese red pine had no effect on the growth of S. cerevisiae in apple juice while the EO of Ribes nigrum led to a two-stage growth of the yeast. The investigated plant compounds are potential natural food preservatives

Enzymatic and antibacterial activity of some actinomycete strains

The soil samples were collected from the Tuv provinces of Mongolia. Three cultures of actinomycetes were isolated and extracted bioactive crude extract with organic solvents, and their antimicrobial activity and some enzyme activities were determined. Actinomycetes 24-TSAND1, 21-TSB8, and 54-TSB4 had protease and amylase enzyme activities Cultures of actinomycetes 24-TSAND1, 21-TSB 8, and 54-TSB4 are highly active against pathogenic bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. However, 24-TSAND1 and 21-TSB 8 cultures were not effective against Escherichia coli pathogens, while 54-TSAND4 culture was moderately active. Also, the nucleotide sequence of the 16S rRNA gene of the actinomycete 24-TSAND1 culture was determined, and the phylogenetic analysis revealed that it depends on the species of Streptomyces microflavus. Зарим актиномицетийн нутгийн өсгөвөрүүдийн ферментийн болон бичил биетний эсрэг идэвх Төв аймгийн хөрснөөс ялгасан актиномицетийн 3 өсгөврийг сонгон органик уусгагчаар хандлан бичил биетний эсрэг идэвх болон зарим ферментийн идэвхийг тодорхойлов. Актиномицетийн 24-Цанд1, 21-ЦБ8 болон 54-ЦБ4 өсгөврүүд нь протеаза, амилаза ферментийн өндөр идэвхтэй байна. Актиномицетийн 24-Цанд1, 21- ЦБ8, 54-ЦБ4 нутгийн өсгөврүүд өвчин үүсгэгч S. aureus–ийн эсрэг идэвх өндөртэй байна. Харин E. coli өвчин үүсгэгчийн эсрэг 24-Цанд1, 21-ЦБ8 өсгөврүүд үйлчлээгүй бол 54-ЦБ4 өсгөвөр дунд зэргийн идэвхтэй байв. Мөн актиномицетийн 24-Цанд1 өсгөврийн 16S рРНХ генийн нуклеотидийн дарааллыг тогтоож, филогенетикийн анализ хийхэд Streptomyces microflavus-ийн төрөл зүйлд хамаарч байгааг тодорхойлов. Түлхүүр үгс: Актиномицет, 16S рРНХ ген, филогенетик, фермент, бичил биетний эсрэг идэв

Antidermatophytic effect of Bacillus mojavensis SZMC 22228 and its secreted chymotrypsin-like protease

The aim of the present study was to investigate the antifungal effect of Bacillus mojavensis SZMC 22228 against different dermatophytes and to isolate the antidermatophytic compound from the bacterial ferment broth. B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 and its cell-free ferment broth effectively inhibited the growth of clinical reference strain of Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton tonsurans in agar diffusion test in vitro. An antidermatophytic, ~25 kDa protein (B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 antidermatophyitc protein, BMAP) was purified from the antifungally active, cell-free ferment broth using size exclusion and ion-exchange chromatography. BMAP showed antifungal effect against all of the investigated dermatophytes both in agar diffusion and broth microdilution susceptibility tests. M. gypseum proved to be the most susceptible dermatophyte to BMAP (MIC=40 μg/ml), all the other investigated fungi were less susceptible (MIC=80 μg/ml). The enzymatic activity of this protein was investigated in microtiter plate assay using hydrolase specific chromogenic substrates. BMAP showed high proteolytic activity towards N-Succ-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe-pNA, and proved to be a chymotrypsin-like protease. These results suggest that the antidermatohytic activity of B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 correlates with its chymotrypsin-like protease production. After further investigations, the purified BMAP could be a promising base of a novel antidermatophytic strategy

Antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic activity on human breast cancer cells of essential oil from Pinus sylvestris. var mongolica needle

Pinus sylvestris. var mongolica is a major source of timber in Mongolia. The logging process makes many kinds of valuable biomass including bark, cones, and needles, which can be used for obtaining essential oil. The essential oil from the needles of wild growing Pinus sylvestris. var mongolica growing in Mongolia was chemically analyzed and its antibacterial, antifungal and cytotoxic activities were evaluated. The chemical analyses identified 101 compounds in the essential oil with the major compounds of α-pinene (29.87 %), limonene + β-phellandrene (16.15 %), camphene (4.95 %), bornylacetate (4.34 %), and β-pinene (3.88 %). This oil possessed the inhibitory activity against B. subtilis, S. cerevisiae, S. aureus and E. coli, successively with minimum inhibition concentration of 0.125, 0.1, 3.0, and 10.0 µg/mL. Importantly, the oil at 50 µg/mL and 100 µg/mL inhibited the growth of MCF-7 cells by 45.3 % and 99.7 %. The half of inhibition concentration of DPPH (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging was 14.36 ± 0.28 mg/mL. The results, therefore, suggested that the essential oil of a Mongolian Scotch pine could potentially be used as a preservative material in cosmetic and food products, as a bioactive agent in anti-inflammatory and wound healing products in view of its antibacterial activity. Given our findings that this essential oil has such profound activity against MCF-7 cancer cells, a further investigation concerning the full extent of this essential oil’s anticancer activities seems warranted. Furthermore, given the promising antimicrobial effects of this essential oil against various bacterial species, an investigation concerning its effect against drug-resistant bacteria would be of immense interest

Illóolajok és kombinációik hatása élelmiszerromlást okozó mikroorganizmusokra

Az utóbbi évek ”zöld” mozgalmai és a tudatos vásárlói magatartás elterjedése, valamint a vásárlók idegenkedése a mesterséges élelmiszer összetevőktől, a kutatók és az élelmiszeripar figyelmét természetes és környezetbarát anyagok felé fordította. Az élelmiszergyártásban komoly kihívást jelentenek az élelmiszerrontó mikroorganizmusok és az ellenük való védekezés. A fertőzött élelmiszerek gondot jelentenek az egészségügy számára is; a súlyos, akut megbetegedések mintegy 30%-áért ételmérgezések felelősek. A hagyományos tartósítószerek nem csak a fogyasztók ellenérzését váltják ki, de sokszor kellemetlen melléktermékek is keletkezhetnek a használatuk során. A benzoesavból például S. cerevisiae és P. anomala hatására benzol keletkezhet, míg a szorbinsavat 1,3-pentadiénné dekarboxilezik, ami petróleumszerű szagot eredményez. A S. pombe ugyanakkor szulfit jelenlétében kellemetlen szagú és ízű vegyületeket hoz létre (Stratford, 2006). Mindezekből következően szükségessé vált új, természetes eredetű hatékony antimikrobiális szerek kifejlesztése, amelyek, legalább részben helyettesíthetik a szintetikus tartósítószereket. Az illóolajokat régóta használják az élelmiszeriparban, elsősorban aromaanyagokként, a legtöbbjük rendelkezik a GRAS (általánosan biztonságosnak tekintett) és FA (élelmiszer adalék) besorolással is, a fogyasztók pedig általában elfogadják a használatukat. Felhasználásuknak lényegében egy akadálya van, nagyon erős aromájuk, amely az élelmiszer ízének megváltozásához vezet, ha túl nagy koncentrációban alkalmazzuk őket. Ezért az illóolajokat gyakran vizsgálják kombinációban, így, ha additív vagy szinergista hatást tapasztalnak, kisebb koncentrációban is hatékonyan alkalmazhatók lehetnek. Munkánk során egyes, kiválasztott illóolajok antimikrobiális hatását teszteltük az élelmiszerekben romlást, illetve élelmiszer eredetű megbetegedést okozó Bacillus subtilis, B. cereus, Escherichia coli és Serratia marcescens baktériumok, illetve Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia anomala, Geotrichum candidum és Schizosaccharomyces pombe élesztőgombák, valamint Fusarium sporotrichioides, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium chrysogenum és Rhizopus stolonifer penészgombák ellen. Eredményeink jelentős mértékben bővítették az illóolajok Gram pozítiv és Gram negatív baktériumokra, élesztőkre és fonalas gombákra gyakorolt antimikrobiális hatására vonatkozó ismereteket. Az élelmiszerek és az illóolajok kölcsönhatásával kapcsolatos, gyakorlati szempontból is fontos eredményeink, hasznosíthatóak az illóolajok tartósítószerként történő esetleges későbbi felhasználása során

Antidermatophytic effect of Bacillus mojavensis SZMC 22228 and its secreted chymotrypsin-like protease

The aim of the present study was to investigate the antifungal effect of Bacillus mojavensis SZMC 22228 against different dermatophytes and to isolate the antidermatophytic compound from the bacterial ferment broth. B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 and its cell-free ferment broth effectively inhibited the growth of clinical reference strain of Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton tonsurans in agar diffusion test in vitro. An antidermatophytic, ~25 kDa protein (B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 antidermatophyitc protein, BMAP) was purified from the antifungally active, cell-free ferment broth using size exclusion and ion-exchange chromatography. BMAP showed antifungal effect against all of the investigated dermatophytes both in agar diffusion and broth microdilution susceptibility tests. M. gypseum proved to be the most susceptible dermatophyte to BMAP (MIC=40 μg/ml), all the other investigated fungi were less susceptible (MIC=80 μg/ml). The enzymatic activity of this protein was investigated in microtiter plate assay using hydrolase specific chromogenic substrates. BMAP showed high proteolytic activity towards N-Succ-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe-pNA, and proved to be a chymotrypsin-like protease. These results suggest that the antidermatohytic activity of B. mojavensis SZMC 22228 correlates with its chymotrypsin-like protease production. After further investigations, the purified BMAP could be a promising base of a novel antidermatophytic strategy