Journal of Antimicrobial Agents

Antimicrobial agents are added to semen extenders to control the growth of microbes contaminating semen during collection. However, such a non-therapeutic use of antibiotics is not without problems, since it may contribute to the development of antibiotic resistance. This review analyses the risks and benefits of using antibiotics to control bacteria in boar semen extenders, including understanding how semen becomes contaminated and the effects of these contaminants on sperm quality. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of using antibiotics to control bacteria will be considered, as well as possible alternatives.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease is a serious condition due to reactivation of previously latent infection or newly acquired infection, it occurs frequently in immunocompromised patients by HIV infection. Even it is actually uncommon in the developed nations with the widespread use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), CMV disease continues to be among the most common opportunistic infections in patient living with HIV (PLWH) in developing countries. Its severity is linked to its tropism for retina and central nervous system (CNS). It generally affects patients with major deficit in cellular immunity. It’s also an important HIV cofactor that promotes the virus progression and influences morbidity and mortality in PLWH by maintaining immunity dysregulation as well as a chronic systemic inflammation. Retinitis is the major reported CMV disease in PLWH, followed by gastro-intestinal and CNS involvements, rarely lung can be also affected. Diagnosis is achieved by clinical examination; the gold standard is polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in blood and tissue samples. Unless an earlier and effective management, prognosis of CMV disease will be unfavorable. The standard treatment is based on the administration of systemic antiviral drugs. Maintenance treatment is strongly indicated in CMV retinitis to prevent relapses; whereas its indication is discussed in the other organ involvements.

Salmonella enterica is a microorganism with high zoonotic potential, distributed worldwide, having more than 2,610 identified serovars and affecting different animal species, both production and wildlife animals. Objective: Prevention of human salmonellosis requires prior monitoring of Salmonella in animals. In this study. Salmonella enterica serovars from different animal origins were isolated and their antimicrobial susceptibility was determined.
Methods: A total of 2193 samples from different origins (feces of cattle, sheep, horses, pigs, dog, chickens and seagulls and chicken eggs) were analyzed for bacterial typing and antimicrobial susceptibility was studied by the Kirby-Bauer method including 9 antibacterial agents (florfenicol, amoxicillin, ceftiofur, gentamicin, oxytetracycline, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, enrofloxacine, ampicillin and cefoperazone) and MIC50 and MIC90 for 6 of them were determined.
Results: A 4.38% serovar isolation (n = 96), including 6 S. Typhimurium (6.25%) from equine cattle and pig feces, 19 S. Enteritidis (19.79%) from seagulls and pigs and 71 other serovars, was obtained from the various animal origins. Serovar S. Typhimurium showed high resistance to oxytetracycline and gentamicin by the Kirby-Bauer method and a MIC90 of 512 μg.mL-1 for oxytetracycline and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole antibiotics. By the diffusion method, serovar S. Enteritidis was resistant to trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole and its MIC90 was 256 μg.mL-1 for oxytetracycline. The 32% of Salmonella isolates showed multi-resistance, 2 strains, isolated from pigs (one S. Typhimurium and one S. Enteritidis serovars), showed resistance to 5 antimicrobials tested.
Conclusion: The constant release of these serovars to the environment, reaching also animal food, is a permanent potential risk for public health, turning into a first priority the establishment of control and antibiotic therapy strategies.

The main aim of the study was to determine the antimicrobial potency of the plant extracts from leaves of Aloe secundiflora, Bulbine frutescens, Tagetes minuta and Vernonia lasiopus when used in combinations. The extracts were used against Gram negative bacteria (Shigella flexineri, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis), Gram positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) and fungal pathogen Candida albicans by Kirby Bauer method. The combination were determined using the permutation formula of P=N! / (N-R)! Producing six combinations. The combining of the plant extracts from Bulbine frutescens and Vernonia lasiopus with the others showed improved antimicrobial activity especially against Escherichia coli. A decrease in antimicrobial activity was observed when all the plant extracts were used in combinations against Candida albicans. The standard antibiotics used were Ciprofloxacin (Gram negative bacteria), Vancomycin (Gram positive bacteria) and fluconazole against Candida albicans. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the extracts confirmed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, tannins and flavonoids. Our study revealed that, some of the plant extracts can be used in combination in improving their effectiveness in treating the diseases caused by the bacterial pathogens and fungus Candida albicans.

The main aim of the study was to determine the antimicrobial effect of methanolic leaf extract of Aloe secundiflora against four Gram-negative bacteria (Shigella flexineri, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis), one Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) and on one fungal pathogen (Candida albicans) by Kirby Bauer method. The extract was found to be more effective against all the bacterial pathogens and Candida albicans using ciprofloxacin as the standard antibiotic for Gram-negative bacterial pathogens, Vancomycin for Staphylococcus aureus and Fluconazole for Candida albicans with an MIC range of 3-11 mg/ml. the preliminary analysis for the extracts confirmed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, tannins and flavonoids. Our study revealed that, the extract from Aloe secundiflora leaf can be used in treating the diseases caused by the bacterial pathogens.

The biodiversity of ocean living resources provide an ample scope for the extraction of drugs and chemicals for therapeutic purposes. Sea weed Amphiroa anceps, collected from Thondi-Palk Strait region of Tamil Nadu, was studied for antagonistic activity of proteins. Seaweed species were identified based on specula morphology. Ethyl Acetate extracts yielded a total of 0.9 g, 0.12 g, 0.02 g, 0.14 g and 0.17 g from 1.5 g of sponge respectively. The antagonistic activity of crude extract against bacterial pathogens showed clear inhibition zones against Yersinia sp., Streptococcus sp. and Vibrio sp. The extracted Seaweed strain had Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations against all the three chicken meat associated pathogens, Vibrio sp., Yersinia sp. and Streptococcus sp. and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration against two chicken meat associated pathogens, Vibrio sp. and Yersinia sp.