Drug resistance in Candida albicans isolates and related changes in the structural domain of Mdr1 protein.

BACKGROUND: The increasing azole drug resistance in fungal pathogens poses a pressing threat to global health care. The coexistence of drug-resistant Candida albicans with tuberculosis patients and the failure of several drugs to treat C. albicans infection extend hospital stay, economic burden, and death. The misuse or abuse of azole-derived antifungals, chronic use of TB drugs, different immune-suppressive drugs, and diseases like HIV, COVID-19, etc., have aggravated the situation. So it is vital to understand the molecular changes in drug-resistant genes to modify the treatment to design an alternative mechanism. METHOD: C. albicans isolated from chronic tuberculosis patients were screened for antifungal sensitivity studies using disk diffusion assay. The multidrug-resistant C. albicans were further screened for molecular-level changes in drug resistance using MDR1 gene sequencing and compared with Gen bank data of similar species using the BLAST tool. RESULTS: The investigation proved that the isolated C. albicans from TB patients are significantly resistant to the action of six drugs. The molecular changes in MDR1 genes showed differences in seven nucleotide base pairs that interfered with the efflux pump.

Ganoderma lucidum inspired silver nanoparticles and its biomedical applications with special reference to drug resistant Escherichia coli isolates from CAUTI.

In the search for alternative therapy for infections and other ailments, metallic nanoparticles, mainly silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesized through bioengineered sources are extensively explored. Fungal bioactive compounds and their nanoparticles were reported with the potential biomedical application. A medicinal mushroom Ganoderma lucidum was reported as a repository of rich medicinal properties. In the current study, silver nanoparticles were synthesized using the extracts of G. lucidum and its antimicrobial activity was tested against drug-resistant Escherichia coli isolated from the catheter used for urinary tract infection (CAUTI). The GC-MS study of G. lucidum extracts showed the presence of ethyl acetoacetate ethylene acetal with the highest area percentage of 72.2% and retention time (RT 5873). Pyridine-3-ol is the second primary compound with a peak height of 6.44% and a retention time of 2.143. The third compound is l,4-Dioxane-2,3-diol, with an area of 8.09% and RT 5450. Butylated Hydroxy Toluene [BHT] is the fourth major compound with an area of 3.32%, and 9-Cedranone constitutes the fifth position in occupying the area percentage [1.88] and height 1.56%. Pyrrole is the sixth primary compound registering an area size of 0.96% and height 2.06%. The AgNPs synthesized using G. lucidum extract were in size range 23 and 58 nm as per SEM analysis and within the range wavelength 0.556-0.796 nm as per UV-Vis spectral study. FTIR Spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) were made to characterize the formed nanoparticles. The AgNPs synthesized effectively inhibited the growth of E. coli isolated from catheter-associated urinary tract infection and showed resistance to many drugs. The antioxidant potential of the synthesized nanoparticles assessed using DPPH radical scavenging activity, EC50 (µg/ml), and ARP data showed that the prepared nanoparticles were more potent in free radical scavenging activity than the standard quercetin. The cytotoxicity effect of Ag-NPs on breast cancer cell line- MDA-MB-231 confirmed its anticancer potential. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of Ag-NPs to inhibit 50% of the tumor was 9.2 g/mL. The synthesized GL-AgNPs was exhibited a multifocal biomedical potential.

Microbial diversity in firework chemical exposed soil and water samples collected in Virudhunagar district, Tamil Nadu, India.

Microbial diversity of soil and water samples collected from pyrochemicals exposed areas of Virdhunagar district (Tamil Nadu, India) was studied. Soil and water samples from cultivable area, waste land and city area of the same region were also studied for a comparative acount. There is a remarkable reduction in total heterotrophic bacterial population (THB) in pyrochemicals exposed soil and water samples (42 × 10(4) CFU/g and 5.6 × 10(4) CFU/ml respectively), compared to the THB of cultivable area soil and water samples (98 × 10(7) CFU/g and 38.6 × 10(7) CFU/ml). The generic composition the THB of the pyrochemicals exposed samples too exhibited considerable change compared to other samples. Pseudomonas sp. was the predominant one (41.6%) followed by Achromobacter sp. (25%) in pyrochemical exposed soil and Pseudomonas sp. was the predominant one (25%) in pyrochemical exposed water samples followed by Bacillus sp. (25%) and Micrococcus sp. (16.6%). It was observed that Cornybacterium sp. and Micrococcus sp. were absent completely in pyrochemical exposed soil and Achromobacter sp. was missing in the pyrochemical exposed water samples, which were present in the other samples. The outcome of this study clearly demonstrates that pollutants such as chemicals used in pyrotechniques affect the microbial biodiversity and suitable measures have to be taken to control the pollution level and to save biodiversity.