Quorum quenching activity of AiiA lactonase KMMI17 from endophytic Bacillus thuringiensis KMCL07 on AHL- mediated pathogenic phenotype in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Virulence pathways in gram-negative pathogenic bacteria are regulated by quorum sensing mechanisms, through the production and sensing of N-acylhomoserine lactone (AHL) signal molecules. Enzymatic degradation to disrupt quorum-sensing in these bacteria could pave the way for the new development in decreasing resistance strains and are of significant interest for clinical, agricultural, and industrial applications. Isolated endophytic Bacillus thuringiensis strain KMCL07 showing quorum quenching activity on Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 has been studied. AiiA lactonase KMMI17 identified belongs to metallo- ß-lactamase superfamily preserving conserved regions of 106HXDH-59 amino acids-H169-21 amino acids-D191 motif, significantly inhibits the biofilm formation and attenuates virulence factor pyocyanin production of PAO1. Insilico molecular docking analysis of lactonase KMMI17 using alternative catalytic site (PDB entry: 3DHA) with the AHL-based QS system regulators of PAO-1, C4 AHL, C6 AHL and 3-oxo-C12 AHL molecules showed good binding affinity between the protein and ligands, Phe111 and Tyr198 residues plays an important role in binding them. Crude enzyme extract was found to have Km value for C6-HSL: 134.2702 ±â€¯34.83 µM-1, C4-HSL: 308.217 ±â€¯139.9 µM-1 and 3-oxo-C12-HSL: 760.463 ±â€¯251.3 µM-1. LCMS analysis confirms the degradation activity of lactonase KMMI17 on AHL molecules and its hydrolytic process, which indicates the potential application of lactonase KMMI17 as a biocontrol agent or an anti-pathogenic drug.

Yield and nutritional content of Pleurotus sajor caju on wheat straw supplemented with raw and detoxified mahua cake.

The effect of supplementation of wheat straw (WS) with raw/detoxified mahua cake (MC) on yield and nutritional quality of Pleurotus sajor caju was studied. Raw cake significantly enhanced the yield compared to control and could be tolerated up to a 10% addition. Detoxification further improved the mushroom yield giving a maximum of 1024.7 g kg(-1) from WS supplemented with 20% saponin free detoxified mahua cake. Chemical analysis of fruit bodies revealed that they are rich in proteins (27.4-34.8%), soluble sugars (28.6-32.2%) and minerals. Glucose, trehalose and glutamic acid, alanine were the major sugars and amino acids detected by HPLC analysis, respectively. HPLC studies further confirmed the absence of saponins (characteristic toxins present in MC) in both fruit bodies and spent. Degradation of complex molecules in spent was monitored via FTIR. The study proved beneficial for effective management of agricultural wastes along with production of nutrient rich and saponin free fruit bodies/spent.

Bioflocculant exopolysaccharide production by Azotobacter indicus using flower extract of Madhuca latifolia L.

Efficacy of Azotobacter indicus ATCC 9540 strain for production exopolysaccharide (EPS) bioflocculant was investigated. Mahua flower extract (Madhuca latifolia L), a natural substrate at the concentration of 20 g L(-1), gave maximum recovery of EPS followed by sucrose and mannitol as compared to other carbon sources after 172 h. Yeast extract was found to be the most effective nitrogen source as compared to beef extract, sodium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, casein hydrolysate, and urea for the production of EPS. EPS production was increased in presence of nitrogen (5.51 g L(-1)) as compared to nitrogen-free medium (3.51 g L(-1)), and fermentation time was also reduced by 28 h. Maximum EPS production (6.10 g L(-1)) was found in the presence of 20 g L(-1) flower extract and 0.5 g L(-1) yeast extract containing Ashby's media with 180 rpm at 30 degrees C at 144 h, under controlled conditions in 2.5 L fermenter using optimized medium. The isolated EPS showed cation-dependent flocculating activity. Concentration of EPS played an important role in bioflocculating activity which increased in a concentration-dependent manner up to a certain limit, with the maximum flocculation of 72% at 500 mg L(-1) concentration but remained almost static after this concentration. Extracted polymer was characterized by different chemical tests, FT-IR spectroscopy, and TLC which showed presence of uronic acids, O-acetyl groups, and Orcinol with suggestive indication of alginate like polymer. This study suggests that use of M. latifolia L. flowers can be a potential alternative bioresource for production of exopolysaccharide.

Occurrence of aflatoxins in mahua (Madhuca indica Gmel.) seeds: synergistic effect of plant extracts on inhibition of Aspergillus flavus growth and aflatoxin production.

Occurrence of aflatoxin in Madhuca indica Gmel. seeds was determined by competitive ELISA. Eighty percent of mahua seed samples were found to be contaminated with aflatoxin. Total aflatoxin content ranged from 115.35 to 400.54ppb whereas the concentration of AFB(1) was in the range of 86.43 to 382.45ppb. Mahua oil was extracted by cold press expeller and analysed for contamination of aflatoxin in both the oil and cake samples. Total aflatoxin and aflatoxin B(1) were 220.66 and 201.57ppb in oil as compared to that in cake samples where it was 87.55 and 74.35ppb, respectively. Various individual and combined plant extracts were evaluated for their efficacy against growth of Aspergillus flavus and aflatoxin production in vitro. Combination of botanicals were found to be more effective in controlling fungal growth and aflatoxin production than individual extracts. Results of the present study suggests that synergistic effect of plant extracts can be used for control of fungal growth and aflatoxin production. These natural plant products may successfully replace synthetic chemicals and provide an alternative method to protect mahua as well as other agricultural commodities of nutritional significance from toxigenic fungi such as A. flavus and aflatoxin production.