RESUMEN
BACKGROUNDS: Snails (Gastropoda) have a mechanism for the production of a significant amount of slime and substances contained therein they use to protect themselves against bacterial or fungal pathogens. These active substances are involved in both humoral and cellular immune responses of the gastropods. The antibacterial or antifungal effect of the humoral immune component of slime lies in cytotoxic and haemagglutination activity against potential microbial pathogens. The activity of antibacterial agents present in Achatina reticulata slime against bacterial strains of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was tested. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of five samples of slime from laboratory reared Achatina reticulata were tested. To eliminate potential microbial contamination, slime samples were sterilized by UV radiation. To screen slime samples for antibacterial activity, the simple diffusion method on Mueller-Hinton agar was used. Samples diluted in guaiacol glycerol ether were used in the testing. RESULTS: The results show that the biologically active substances present in Achatina reticulata slime have an antimicrobial activity which is almost commensurate with that of the conventional antibiotics used to treat bacterial infections. The results of the determination of the antimicrobial effects of Achatina reticulata slime also highlighted viridation (partial hemolysis of erythrocytes after 24 hours of slime cultivation exposed to UV light for 60 minutes on Columbia blood agar. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the antimicrobial activity testing of selected Achatina reticulata slime samples show that the gastropod slime contains biologically active substances with a relatively significant antimicrobial activity.