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A total of 82 endophytic bacteria of tomato and chilli was isolated from different locations of tropical Islands of Andaman and Nicobar, India. Based on in vitro screening, 16 bacterial isolates that effectively inhibited Ralstonia solanacearum (a bacterial wilt pathogen) were characterised for their diversity and identified through Microbial Identification System (Biolog). Diversity analysed through BOX-PCR showed low similarity index among the antagonistic bacteria. Based on the in vitro antagonistic activities, the selected isolates were further characterised for siderophore, indole acetic acid production, phosphate solubilisation and other extracellular enzymes; it is found that most of the isolates were positive for these properties. The production of these metabolites may be responsible for the inhibition of the pathogen R. solanacearum. The isolates BECS3, BECS6 and BECS7 showed multiple attributes and demonstrated plant growth promotion properties through tomato- and chilli-based bioassay under greenhouse conditions. These bacterial inoculations were found to result in significant increase in root, shoot and biomass of both tomato and chilli. Hence, these isolates can be further formulated and used for field application. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Lichen-associated endophytic Actinobacteria, particularly Streptomyces species, are recognized for their production of bioactive secondary metabolites with significant pharmaceutical potential. With the escalating prevalence of diseases, Streptomyces species are being investigated for its natural source of antimicrobial compounds for new antibiotics. This study focuses on the bioactive properties of secondary metabolites from lichen-associated endophytic Actinobacteria, focusing on Streptomyces glaucescens NTSB-37 isolated form lichen, Parmotrema perlatum (Huds.) M. Choisy of Kolli hills, Tamil Nadu, India. Among 54 Actinobacterial isolates (NTSB-1 to NTSB-54) collected from various regions in Tamil Nadu, Streptomyces glaucescen NTSB-37 demonstrated notable antibacterial and anti-dermatophytic activities against multidrug-resistant bacteria and dermatophytes, including Trichomonas rubrum and Microsporum canis. The morphological and molecular (16S rRNA gene sequencing) characterization confirmed its identity. Secondary metabolites screening via FTIR and GC-MS revealed bioactive compounds in crude extracts and exhibited increased antibacterial activity with increasing dosage volume and notable MIC values. Partial purification was achieved through TLC and HPTLC fingerprinting. Further investigation shows Streptomyces glaucescens NTSB-37, an endophytic actinobacteria, is a prolific producer of bioactive secondary metabolites with effective antimicrobial agents amid the growing challenge of drug resistance and suggesting biotechnological applications in human health. The findings furthermore emphasize the important of exploring novel ecosystem, particularly lichens with abundant microhabitats within and in hilly regions for developing bioactive compounds with therapeutic potential., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests. Ethical Approval: Not Applicable. Consent for Publication: All authors agreed to publish this manuscript in this journal., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Sixty-eight morphologically distinct isolates of marine actinomycetes were derived from seashore, mangrove, and saltpan ecosystems located between the Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar region, Bay of Bengal, Tamilnadu. Twenty-five (36.8%) isolates exhibited anti-mycotic activity against Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans in preliminary screening, and 4 isolates with prominent activity were identified and designated at the genus level as Streptomyces sp. VPTS3-I, Streptomyces sp. VPTS3-2, Streptomyces sp. VPTSA1-4 and Streptomyces sp. VPTSA1-8. All the potential antagonistic isolates were further characterized with phenotypic and genotypic properties including 16S rRNA gene sequencing and identified species level as Streptomyces afghaniensis VPTS3-1, S. matensis VPTS3-2, S. tuirus VPTSA1-4 and S. griseus VPTSA1-8. In addition, the active fractions from the potential antagonistic streptomycetes were extracted with organic solvents by shake flask culture method and the anti-mycotic efficacies were evaluated. The optimization parameters for the production of the anti-mycotic compound were found to be pH between 7 and 8, the temperature at 30ᵒC, the salinity of 2%, incubation of 9 days, and starch and KNO 3 as the suitable carbon and nitrogen sources respectively in starch casein medium., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

A variety of foods and environmental sources harbor bacteria that are resistant to one or more antimicrobial drugs used in medicine and agriculture. Antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli is of particular concern because it is the most common Gram-negative pathogen in humans. Hence this study was conducted to determine the antibiotic sensitivity pattern of E. coli isolated from different types of food items collected randomly from twelve localities of Hyderabad, India. A total of 150 samples comprising; vegetable salad, raw egg-surface, raw chicken, unpasteurized milk, and raw meat were processed microbiologically to isolate E. coli and to study their antibiotic susceptibility pattern by the Kirby-Bauer method. The highest percentages of drug resistance in isolates of E. coli were detected from raw chicken (23.3%) followed by vegetable salad (20%), raw meat (13.3%), raw egg-surface (10%) and unpasteurized milk (6.7%). The overall incidence of drug resistant E. coli was 14.7%. A total of six (4%) Extended Spectrum β-Lactamase (ESBL) producers were detected, two each from vegetable salads and raw chicken, and one each from raw egg-surface and raw meat. Multidrug resistant strains of E. coli are a matter of concern as resistance genes are easily transferable to other strains. Pathogen cycling through food is very common and might pose a potential health risk to the consumer. Therefore, in order to avoid this, good hygienic practices are necessary in the abattoirs to prevent contamination of cattle and poultry products with intestinal content as well as forbidding the use of untreated sewage in irrigating vegetables.

The systematic study was conducted on the microalgal flora of Western Ghats and other parts of Eastern Ghats revealed a rich wetland algal resource for biotechnological exploration. The present study reveals with the diversity of microalgal flora in the region of Kodaikanal (10 degrees 14' N, 77 degrees 28' E), Gudalur (9 degrees 19'N 77 degrees 12'E), Agasthiyar falls (9 degrees 58'N, 78 degrees 10'E) and Kolli hills (10 degrees 12'N, 77 degrees 56'E) located in Western and Eastern Ghats of Tamilnadu, India collected in May 2011. In total, 97 species of micro algae belonging to three taxonomic groups were identified, of which 41 species belonging to Cyanophyceae, 38 species from Chlorophyceae and 18 species from Bacillariophyceae. The predominant species in Cyanophyceae were Aphanothece microscopica, Chroococcus minutus, Coelospharium dubium, Hydrococcus rivularism, Oscillatoria princeps, Nostoc muscorum, Nostoc puncteforme, Nostoc commune, Gleotricha gausii, Calothrix braunii, Rivellaria sp., Tolypothrix tenuis, Scytonema schmidtii, whereas in Chlorophyceae, Chlorella sp., Scenedesmus sp., Pediastrum duplex, Cosmarium consperum, Euastrum elagans, Micrasterias americana and in Bacillariophyceae, Navicula hallophyla, Rhophaldia gebrella, Fragellaria intermedia, Pinnularia virdis, Nitzchia palliate. Physicochemical nature of water samples were analyzed and correlated with the total microalgal diversity. Based on the correlation coefficient data, the micro algae showed positive relationship with dissolved oxygen, salinity, nutrients and negative relationship with temperature and turbidity. The species diversity index (H'), Species Richness (SR) and species evenness (J') were calculated and analyzed for microalgal population dynamic variation in the Western and Eastern Ghats.

An exploration of the microalgal biodiversity from different epiphytes and substrates of pool water in temple at Tiruchirappalli District was studied. Totally ten epiphytic forms were selected for this investigation. In that, totally 44 species of 30 genera belonging to 3 families of the Chlorophyceae, Cyanophyceae (heterocystous and non-heterocystous) and Bacillariophyceae were identified and recorded. The dominant species in this environment were Cyanobacteria (Chroococcus sp. and Oscillatoria sp., Phormidium sp.), Green algae (Tetradron sp. and Scenedesmus sp.) and Diatom (Fragilaria sp. and Navicula sp.) were documented. The molecular taxonomy of cyanobacteria were also analyzed, in this regards, DNA was extracted; 16S rDNA gene was amplified and sequenced. The evolutionary relationship was found in the epiphytic microalgae by Neighbour-Joining method by construction of phylogenetic tree.