A new antibacterial compound from Ibicella lutea.

Ibicella lutea is a 'quasi-carnivorous' plant that grows wild in Uruguay where it is used in popular medicine as an antiseptic for eye and skin infections. In an earlier screening, it showed a broad antibacterial spectrum. From the chloroform extract of the plant the main antibacterial compound has now been isolated and identified by several MS and NMR methods as a new compound, 11-O-(6'-O-acetyl-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-stearic acid.

[Application of a computer program for identifying different genera and species of the Enterobacteriaceae family in clinical bacteriology]. / Aplicación de un programa de computación para la identificación de los distintos géneros y especies de la familia Enterobacteriaceae en bacteriología clínica.

Computer programs were developed for the selection of a minimum set of biochemical tests that allow the identification of the species of Enterobacteriaceae with major clinical significance. The system proposed consists of nine conventional biochemical tests, the results of which are interpreted with the help of a numeric code. This selects the most probable species for each result and, when necessary, additional tests can be performed to confirm the identification proposed. The system (SYS9E) was used in the identification of 66 strains of nosocomial origin. The results were compared with those of commercial systems.

Production and characterization of a new bioemulsifier from Pseudomonas putida ML2.

AIMS: To characterize the bioemulsifier produced by a nonfluorescent strain of Pseudomonas putida isolated from a polluted sediment and to determine the influence of pH, temperature, media composition, and carbon and nitrogen source on growth and emulsifying activity. METHODS AND RESULTS: Different indexes were employed to determine the emulsifying properties of culture supernatants of P. putida ML2 in defined and complex media. Surface tension of cell-free supernatants was measured. Purification and chemical analysis of the emulsifier was performed. Confirmed results indicate that a polysaccharide with hexasaccharide repeating units is responsible for the emulsifying activity in a mineral medium with glucose as sole carbon source. Moreover, an emulsifier is produced when growing on naphthalene. CONCLUSIONS: Culture media composition influences the amount and the properties of the emulsifier produced by this P. putida strain. Under nitrogen limiting conditions, a polysaccharide is responsible for the emulsifying activity in defined mineral media. In complex nitrogen rich medium, a different kind of emulsifier is produced. The exopolymer may contribute to hydrocarbons solubilization. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This is the first exopolysaccharide with emulsifying properties produced by a Pseudomonas strain reported to the present. Also chemical composition is significantly different from previous reports. This strain has potential use in bioremediation and the purified polysaccharide may be used in food and cosmetic industry. Moreover, the production of the exopolymer may play a role on biofilm formation.

Characterization of a methanogenic sludge to be used as inoculum for a high-rate reactor.

The sludge of an anaerobic lagoon treating the wastewater from a factory producing baker's yeast was evaluated as inoculum for anaerobic digestion. Specific methanogenic activity tests failed to give a good estimation of the trophic groups that were evidenced by enumerations involving Most Probable Number estimations. This failure was ascribed to the toxic effects of either the acetate concentrations used or to the ammonia content of the sludge.

Caloramator proteoclasticus sp. nov., a new moderately thermophilic anaerobic proteolytic bacterium.

A new moderately thermophilic proteolytic anaerobe, strain UT, was isolated from mesophilic granular methanogenic sludge. The cells were spore-forming, motile rods that were 0.4 micron wide and 2.4 to 4 microns long and stained gram negative. Electron micrographs of thin sections revealed the presence of an atypical gram-positive cell wall. Optimum growth occurred at 55 degrees C and at pH values between 7.0 and 7.5, with a doubling time of 30 min. The DNA base ratio of guanine plus cytosine was 31 mol%. The bacterium fermented proteins mainly to acetate, hydrogen, formate, and branched-chain fatty acids. Several amino acids, including glutamate, aspartate, arginine, histidine, threonine, methionine, and branched-chain amino acids, were also utilized. Glutamate was degraded to acetate, formate, hydrogen, and alanine. In addition, the strain degraded carbohydrates, including glucose, fructose, mannose, cellobiose, and starch, to acetate, ethanol, formate, lactate, and hydrogen. The results of a 16S rRNA sequence analysis phylogenetically placed strain UT in the low-guanine-plus-cytosine-content subgroup of the gram-positive phylum. We propose to classify the described strain in the genus Caloramator as a new species, Caloramator proteoclasticus. The type strain of C. proteoclasticus, strain U, has been deposited in the Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen as strain DSM 10124.

Overproduction of the rbo gene product from Desulfovibrio species suppresses all deleterious effects of lack of superoxide dismutase in Escherichia coli.

In an attempt to isolate the superoxide dismutase (SOD) gene from the anaerobic sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfoarculus baarsii, a DNA fragment was isolated which functionally complemented an Escherichia coli mutant (sodA sodB) deficient in cytoplasmic SODs. This region carries two open reading frames with sequences which are very similar to that of the rbo-rub operon from Desulfovibrio vulgaris. Independent expression of the rbo and rub genes from ptac showed that expression of rbo was responsible for the observed phenotype. rbo overexpression suppressed all deleterious effects of SOD deficiency in E. coli, including inactivation by superoxide of enzymes containing 4Fe-4S clusters and DNA damage produced via the superoxide-enhanced Fenton reaction. Thus, rbo restored to the sodA sodB mutant the ability to grow on minimal medium without the addition of branched amino acids, and growth on gluconate and succinate carbon sources was no longer impaired. The spontaneous mutation rate, which is elevated in SOD-deficient mutants, returned to the wild-type level in the presence of Rbo, which also restored aerobic viability of sodA sodB recA mutants. Rbo from Desulfovibrio vulgaris, but not Desulfovibrio gigas desulforedoxin, which corresponds to the NH2-terminal domain of Rbo, complemented sod mutants. The physiological role of Rbo in sulfate-reducing bacteria is unknown. In E. coli, Rbo may permit the bacterium to avoid superoxide stress by maintaining functional (reduced) superoxide sensitive 4Fe-4S clusters. It would thereby restore enzyme activities and prevent the release of iron that occurs after cluster degradation and presumably leads to DNA damage.

Coprothermobacter platensis sp. nov., a new anaerobic proteolytic thermophilic bacterium isolated from an anaerobic mesophilic sludge.

A new anaerobic, proteolytic, moderately thermophilic bacterium, strain 3RT, was isolated from a methanogenic mesophilic reactor treating protein-rich wastewater. The cells were Gram-negative, non-spore-forming, non-motile rods. The DNA base composition was 43 mol% G + C. The optimum pH and temperature for growth were 7.0 and 55 degrees C respectively. The bacterium fermented gelatin, casein, bovine albumin, peptone and yeast extract. Glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose and starch were poorly fermented. The major fermentation products from glucose were acetate, CO2 and H2 and, from gelatin, propionate was also detected. Growth on glucose was stimulated by thiosulfate, which was reduced to sulfide. Sulfate and nitrate were not reduced. 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed that the isolated bacterial strain was phylogenetically related to Coprothermobacter proteolyticus (96.3% sequence similarity), the only known species within the genus. DNA-DNA hybridization analysis demonstrated a very low level of homology, indicating that the isolated strain and C. proteolyticus were not related at species level. Therefore, it is proposed to classify the described strain in the genus Coprothermobacter as a new species, Coprothermobacter platensis. The type strain of C. platensis is strain 3RT (= DSM 11748T).

Aplicación de un programa de computación para la identificación de los distintos géneros y especies de la familia Enterobacteriaceae en bacteriología clínica. / [Application of a computer program for identifying different genera and species of the Enterobacteriaceae family in clinical bacteriology]

Computer programs were developed for the selection of a minimum set of biochemical tests that allow the identification of the species of Enterobacteriaceae with major clinical significance. The system proposed consists of nine conventional biochemical tests, the results of which are interpreted with the help of a numeric code. This selects the most probable species for each result and, when necessary, additional tests can be performed to confirm the identification proposed. The system (SYS9E) was used in the identification of 66 strains of nosocomial origin. The results were compared with those of commercial systems.