Nearly all clinically used antibiotics have been (1) discovered from microorganisms (2) using phenotype screens to identify inhibitors of bacterial growth. The effectiveness of these antibiotics is attributed to their endogenous roles as bacterial warfare agents against competing microorganisms. Unfortunately, every class of clinically used antibiotic has been met with drug resistant bacteria. ...

Infections with the bacteria Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) are very difficult to eradicate in cystic fibrosis patients due the intrinsic resistance of Bcc to most available antibiotics and the emergence of multiple antibiotic resistant strains during antibiotic treatment. In this work, we used a whole-cell based assay to screen a diverse collection of small molecules for growth inhibitors ...

Background: Asparagus racemosus (Shatavari) is widely used in Kerala, for the treatment of urinary tract infection (UTI) both by the rural folks and by traditional doctors without any scientific evidence. In this context, we decided to evaluate the antibacterial property of A. racemosus against common organisms causing UTI. Aims and Objective: To evaluate and compare the antibacterial activity ...

Increasing resistance to every major class of antibiotics and a dearth of novel classes of antibacterial agents in development pipelines has created a dwindling reservoir of treatment options for serious bacterial infections. The bacterial type IIA topoisomerases, DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV, are validated antibacterial drug targets with multiple prospective drug binding sites, including th...

Recently, various nanoscale materials, including silver (Ag) nanoparticles, have been actively studied for their capacity to effectively prevent bacterial growth. A critical challenge is to enhance the antibacterial properties of nanomaterials while maintaining their biocompatibility. The conjugation of multiple nanomaterials with different dimensions, such as spherical nanoparticles and high-a...

BACKGROUND Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease resulting in the destruction of periodontal tissues. Various treatment modalities have been tried in the form of mechanical therapy and surgical therapy. Antimicrobial agents have been used as a monotherapy and as an adjunct with mechanical debridement. Various plant extracts have been used as antibacterial agents. Pineapple extract (bromelian...

Neutrophil defensins (or human neutrophil peptides-HNP) are major constituents of the azurophilic granules of human neutrophils and have been shown to display broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. Other activities of these defensins, which are released from stimulated neutrophils, include cytotoxic, stimulatory, and chemotactic activities toward a variety of target cells. We studied the potent...

Implantation is a frequent procedure in orthopedic surgery, particularly in the aging population. However, it possesses the risk of infection and biofilm formation at the surgical site. This can cause unnecessary suffering to patients and burden on the healthcare system. Pure Mg, as a promising metal for biodegradable orthopedic implants, exhibits some antibacterial effects due to the alkaline ...

The object of this study was to discover an alternative therapeutic agent with fewer side effects against acne vulgaris, one of the most common skin diseases. Acne vulgaris is often associated with acne-related bacteria such as Propionibacteriumacnes, Staphylococcusepidermidis, Staphylococcusaureus, and Pseudomonasaeruginosa. Some of these bacteria exhibit a resistance against commercial antibi...

The antibacterial activity of gold nanorod (GNR) suspensions of different surface functionalities was investigated against standard strains of Staphylococcus aureus and Propionibacterium acnes, taking into consideration two commonly "overlooked" factors: the colloidal stability of GNR suspensions upon mixing with bacterial growth media and the possible contribution of "impurities/molecules" in ...