Microbiology at IgMin Research | Biology Group

Two contrasting opinions about virus taxonomy or, more precisely, about virus nomenclature, appeared in the first 2004 issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases [1,2]. These differring ideas about scientific (vs. common) names of viruses are part of a long disagreement among virologists that can be tracked to the early 1950s [3,4].

Surrealism is a means of artistic expression that places automatism at the root of creation, and it has pursued thought that is entirely free of any preconceived notions or restraints. Art and science are seemingly incompatible with each other—one is emotional, the other rational—but here the author would like to consider the sort of thinking that could emerge if science met surrealism halfway. The author would also like to present the Yoshida effect, a physical phenomenon that was chanced upon serendipitously in which microbiology ...approaches surrealism. The Yoshida effect is the formation of a fusion body called a penetron when bacterial cells collide with a nano-sized acicular (needle-shaped) material in a hydrogel friction field. The penetron as an intermediate was applied to the finely detection method of asbestos, and gene transformation method by plasmid DNA.Read more

Microorganisms reside in and around humans and are sometimes pathogenic. However, most of the microbes in the air or in our body, which exist as commensals or symbionts, benefit us in some form or other. We depend heavily on these beneficial microbes for our optimum health. The purpose of this review was to delineate and summarize the various applications of microbes for the benefit of mankind. In many areas, the biochemical properties and metabolic end products of microbes are now being channelized for improving human health and quality of lif...e. The author collated data from various published articles and tried to present a holistic viewpoint of this aspect of the application of microbes for the betterment of human health and public health as well.Read more

The plant-pollinator relationship is one of the most investigated biological processes, not only because of its ecological importance (natural and farming ecosystems) but also its economic profitability (farming and biological products). Current losses of bee populations urge the need to assess the state of wild bee biodiversity in environments such as the Sierra de Guadarrama. Two characteristic sites with different plant diversities were compared by collecting bees using net trapping, a thicket, and a grassland. In this way, not only the poss...ible influence of floral wealth on bee abundance was studied, but also the preference of these Hymenoptera towards any type of flower. Phenological patterns and predominant sex were also studied. 331 bee individuals, belonging to 6 families, 19 genera, and 46 species, were recorded in this study. Our results showed that bee diversity depends not only on environmental factors (temperature or plant composition and abundance) but biological as well (plant-pollinators matches or co-occurring species). Moreover, our study sets a starting point for debating the influence of managed bees (Apis mellifera) on wild bee communities. A preference for a small number of plant species (Cistus ladanifer, Echium vulgare, and Lavandula stoechas) was observed. In addition, there was a relationship between the type of corolla and the tongue length. Our study highlights the importance of this area of the Sierra de Guadarrama for wild bee biodiversity. All things considered, it falls on preserving those ecosystems with high floral wealth to favor the wild bee´s presence and its habitat in the foresight of climate change future scenarios.Read more

Six alkaloid compounds were isolated (the discovery of a natural drug, which is a combination of the six alkaloid compounds). Alkaloids viz., 1,3,5-Triazine-2-carboxylic acid, 4-amino-6-methyl; 1,2,4-Triazino[5,6-E][1,2,4]-triazine-3,6-dione, hexahydro; 2-(4,5-Dihydro-3-methyl-5-oxo-1-phenyl-4-pyrazole)-5-nitrobenzoic acid; 4-metyl-3,4-dihydro-[1,2,3] trizolo [4,5-d] pyrimidine-5,7-dione; Propanoic acid-3-(perhydro-2,5-dioxo-imidazol [4,5-d] imidazole-1-yl) and 1,2,3-Triazolo[4,5-f] benzotriazole- 4,8(4H,8H)-dione, were isolated from Cinnamomum... verum cortexes by using ethanolic acetic acid, sulphuric acid, and ammonia solvents, and they were characterized by using preliminary qualitative tests, gas chromatography-mass spectrumGC-MASS.The medicinal efficacy was studied for these six alkaloidic compounds theoretically by using the Autodock program and the results showed the presence of high efficacy of the compounds. Then the medicinal efficacy was measured biologically for the six compounds mixture in vitro depending on the synergistic interaction principle by using various concentrations (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 mg/ml) by using of agar diffusion technique. The results showed that the six alkaloidic compounds’ mixture is biologically active against Alternaria alternate fungus, where the inhibition zone diameters were recorded equal to 27, 33, 41, 45, and 49 mm respectively towards the pathogenic fungus. Also, cytotoxicity tests for the different concentrations of six active alkaloid compounds mixture proved there is no toxic effect belonging to them towards red blood cells, and no hemolysis effect appeared in blood cells. Therefore, six alkaloid compounds isolated from Cinnamomum verum cortexes can be used as active drugs for the treatment of various diseases especially those caused by pathogenic fungi represented by Alternaria alternate, without any side effects.Read more