Natural food antimicrobials are bioactive compounds that inhibit the growth of microorganisms involved in food spoilage or food-borne illness. However, stability issues result in degradation and loss of antimicrobial activity. Nanoencapsulation allows protection of antimicrobial food agents from unfavorable environmental conditions and incompatibilities. Encapsulation of food antimicrobials con...

Cationic antimicrobial peptides are ancient and ubiquitous immune effectors that multicellular organisms use to kill and police microbes whereas antibiotics are mostly employed by microorganisms. As antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) mostly target the cell wall, a microbial 'Achilles heel', it has been proposed that bacterial resistance evolution is very unlikely and hence AMPs are ancient 'weapons'...

BACKGROUND Agricultural use of antimicrobials in subtherapeutic concentrations is increasing in response to the rising demand for food animal products worldwide. In India, the use of antimicrobials in food animal production is unregulated. Research suggests that many clinically important antimicrobials are used indiscriminately. This is the largest study to date in India that surveys poultry pr...

Fecal Escherichia coli (n = 555) were isolated from 115 residents on 43 farrow-to-finish swine farms to determine the prevalence of antimicrobial resistance and associated risk factors. Susceptibility to 21 antimicrobials was determined and the overall prevalence of antimicrobial resistance was 25.8%. Pair-wise difference in prevalences of resistance to individual antimicrobials was significant...

This article discusses the newest antibiotics, antivirals, and antifungals and their application in ophthalmology. The literature is reviewed to present the latest research on topical antibiotics, with particular attention to the newest classes of fluoroquinolones, new oral and topical antifungals, and new oral antivirals. Data comparing in vitro susceptibilities and minimum inhibitory concentr...

Bacteriocins are described as ribosomally synthesized small poly peptides that exert antimicrobial effects against closely or non-closely related bacteria. The major producer group for bacteriocins is lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that contain a great variety of microorganisms described as “generally recognized as safe (GRAS)” by the US Food and Drug Administration. Due to this accredited safety p...

Antimicrobials are widely used in preventive and curative medicine in animals. Benefits from curative use are clear - it allows sick animals to be healthy with a gain in human welfare. The case for preventive use of antimicrobials is less clear cut with debates on the value of antimicrobials as growth promoters in the intensive livestock industries. The possible benefits from the use of antimic...

Decreasing the use of antimicrobials has become a primary objective for both human and veterinary medicine in many countries. Medical prevention and good nutrition are seen as key parameters for reducing antimicrobial use. However, little consideration has been given to how metabolic diseases may influence the use of antimicrobials in humans and animals through limiting the prevalence and sever...

The effects of selected concentrations of antimicrobials from natural (vanillin, thymol, eugenol, carvacrol or citral) or synthetic (potassium sorbate or sodium benzoate) origin on Aspergillus flavus lag time inoculated in laboratory media formulated at water activity (a(w)) 0.99 and pH 4.5 or 3.5, were evaluated. Time to detect a colony with a diameter > 0.5 mm was determined. Mold response wa...