Dermatophytosis in patients referred for evaluation at a tertiary care teaching hospital in Kashmir, India

Background: Dermatophytoses invade the stratum corneum of the skin and other keratinized tissues derived from the epidermis. They are quite common and can be fairly accurately identified by a simple laboratory test. We conducted this study to identify the common dermatophytic infections in our setting.Methods: Clinically suspected tinea infections were referred to the Department of Microbiology of SKIMS Medical College Hospital, a tertiary-care teaching hospital in Srinagar, Kashmir. The affected area was cleaned with 70% alcohol, and scrapings were obtained. 10% KOH was used for keratinolysis. Samples were thoroughly examined for the presence of filamentous, septate, branched hyphae.Results: A total of 206 samples were analyzed. The overall KOH positivity rate was 44.7%. Of the 206 patients, 119 (57.8%) were males, and 142 (68.9%) resided in rural areas. The mean age of the patients was 32 years (range 4-72). Tinea corporis was the typical clinical manifestation (58.3%).Conclusions: Young and middle-aged males and people living in rural areas are at a higher risk of dermatophyte infections

Soil Microbiome: A Treasure Trove for Soil Health Sustainability under Changing Climate

Climate change imprints on soil are projected primarily through the changes in soil moisture and surge in soil temperature and CO2 levels in response to climate change and is anticipated to have varying impacts on soil characteristics and processes that are instrumental in the restoration of soil fertility as well as productivity. Climate change encompasses a major concern of sharing its impact on the stability and functionality of soil microbiome and is characterized by one or more chief stability metrics encircling resistance, resilience, and functional redundancy. Nevertheless, the explorations over the past years have unveiled the potential of microbial interventions in the regeneration of soils or assurance of perked-up resilience to crops. The strategies involved therein encompass harnessing the native capability of soil microbes for carbon sequestration, phyto-stimulation, bio fertilization, rhizo-mediation, biocontrol of plant pathogens, enzyme-mediated breakdown, antibiosis, prompting of anti-oxidative defense mechanism, exudation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and induced systemic resistance (ISR) response in the host plant. However, the short storage and shelf-life of microbe-based formulations stay a significant constraint and rigorous efforts are necessary to appraise their additive impact on crop growth under changing climate scenarios