Abstract Despite the success in development of antiviral drugs, a need continues to exist for effective therapies for viral infections. Proteinase inhibitors of microbial origin could be used successfully as antiviral agents. The virus-inhibitory activity of a fermentation product, produced by Streptomyces sp. 225b (SS 225) was studied with respect to the specificity and selectivity of inhibiti...

Chemical insecticides provide many benefits to food production and human health and has proven very effective at increasing agriculture and forestry productivities. However, they also pose some hazards as contamination of water and food sources, poisoning of non-target fauna and flora, concentration in the food chain and selection of insect pest populations resistent to the chemical insecticide...

In pathogenic simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections, the translocation of microbial products from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract to portal and systemic circulation has been proposed as a major driver of the chronic immune activation that is associated with disease progression. Consistently, microbial translocation is not present in nonpathogenic ...

The occurrence of vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) and multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains of this organism necessitate the discovery of new classes of anti-staphylococcal drug leads. At present there are no single chemical entity plant derived antibacterials used clinically, and this biologically diverse group deserves consideration as a source of chemical diversity for two impo...

A causal link between the increasing environmental pollution and the fast spreading of allergic diseases is currently discussed. The exogenic and endogenic noxious agents contributing to the total environmental load are primarily acting through immunotoxic, sensitizing and neurotoxic mechanisms in animal experiments and in humans. Beside classic allergic-triggering factors (allergen potency, in...

Microbial infections are now a day’s more common than during the first half of the century. Although, a number of different classes of antibacterial and antifungal agents have been discovered during last two decades the use is limited due to development of microbial resistance. This situation highlights the need for development of novel, potent, and safe antimicrobial agents. Hence the synthesi...

The increasing threat of microbial weapons of mass destruction (WMD) creates a critical need for rapid development and deployment of target-specific microsensor detection systems. Next-generation biosensor-dependent technologies must incorporate intelligence into the microsensor platform, enabling the execution of complex detection tasks, such as systematic identification and classification of ...

Depression is a debilitating psychiatric disorder and a growing global public health issue. However, the relationships between microbial infections and depression remains uncertain. A computerized literature search of Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library was conducted up to May 2013, and 6362 studies were initially identified for screening. Case-control studies dete...

Macrolide antibiotics possess several, beneficial, secondary properties which complement their primary antimicrobial activity. In addition to high levels of tissue penetration, which may counteract seemingly macrolide-resistant bacterial pathogens, these agents also possess anti-inflammatory properties, unrelated to their primary antimicrobial activity. Macrolides target cells of both the innat...

Recent foodborne microbial outbreaks are the driving force in the search for innovative ways to inhibit microbial growth in food while maintaining its quality and safety. A new trend in food preservation consists of the incorporation of antimicrobial films on food surfaces. Many studies have demonstrated that antimicrobial films and coatings are effective in reducing levels of pathogenic organi...