• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.1179-1188
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• 2023

Escherichia coli, particularly multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains, is a serious cause of healthcare-associated infections. Development of novel antimicrobial agents or restoration of drug efficiency is required to treat MDR bacteria, and the use of natural products to solve this problem is promising. We investigated the antimicrobial activity of dried green coffee (DGC) beans, coffee pulp (CP), and arabica leaf (AL) crude extracts against 28 isolated MDR E. coli strains and restoration of ampicillin (AMP) efficiency with a combination test. DGC, CP, and AL extracts were effective against all 28 strains, with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 12.5-50 mg/ml and minimum bactericidal concentration of 25-100 mg/ml. The CP-AMP combination was more effective than CP or AMP alone, with a fractional inhibitory concentration index value of 0.01. In the combination, the MIC of CP was 0.2 mg/ml (compared to 25 mg/ml of CP alone) and that of AMP was 0.1 mg/ml (compared to 50 mg/ml of AMP alone), or a 125-fold and 500-fold reduction, respectively, against 13-drug resistant MDR E. coli strains. Time-kill kinetics showed that the bactericidal effect of the CP-AMP combination occurred within 3 h through disruption of membrane permeability and biofilm eradication, as verified by scanning electron microscopy. This is the first report indicating that CP-AMP combination therapy could be employed to treat MDR E. coli by repurposing AMP.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.533-537
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• 2011

The aim of this study was to develop a new natural preservative system to improve the weak points of natural polyhydric alcohols together with the efficiency of natural plants as a preservative. Polyhydric alcohols (glyceryl caprylate and ethylhexylglycerin) and antimicrobial plants (S. radix, A. nilotica and C. reticulata) were tested using the disc diffusion method and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method for their antimicrobial activity against the common poultry pathogens, respectively. A study of the preservative efficacy of the cosmetic formulations containing the optimized preservative system demonstrated sufficient preservative efficacy against bacteria and eukaryotic test microbes. These results suggest that the natural preservative system including polyhydric alcohol extracts containing natural plants could be incorporated in cosmetic formulations.

• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.73-80
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• 2016

Bioaerosol inactivation becomes important as people recognize the significance on the health effects of bioaerosols. There are several ways to inactivate such bioaerosols such as antimicrobial filters, UV, etc. For the on-filter-inactivation, proper antimicrobial materials coating should be applied. Recently, air ions are adopted to effectively reduce germ and virus activity. Limitations arise when each method is applied separately. Coating materials can experience chemical instability over time and temperature. Ionizers can generate ozone to prepare high ion concentrations. Combinations of developed techniques to enhance the inactivation efficiency were suggested. Researches on the air sterilization are reviewed and outlook is highlighted. Proper techniques such as combinations of filter material coating and air ion generation can be used to make air quality better for human living.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.18-26
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• 2012

In this work, colorants extraction process from gromwell was studied for making powder form of colorants by solving the high viscosity problem of gromwell extracts. In order to do that, sugar extracted together with colorants must be pre-extracted. For sugar decomposition, gromwell roots were pretreated with various enzyme solutions. The total sugar content of pre-extract with enzyme solution was measured. Accordingly, the effects of enzyme type and pretreatment condition on sugar decomposition were investigated to find appropriate enzyme(amylase, hemicellulase, pectinase) and enzyme activity (100~1000unit), pre-extracted time(3~24hr). Color characteristics and dye uptake of dyed fabrics were evaluated. Gromwell colorants were assessed for their potential antimicrobial activities, which possibly expand their end use as functional pigments. The efficiency of removing sugar was increased in the order of hemicellulase, pectinase, amylase, $H_2O$. Gromwell colorants powder yield was in the range of 4.4% to 9.8% depending on pretreatment enzyme. Gromwell colorants produced RP color on the silk and wool fabrics with good dye uptake. Antimicrobial activity of gromwell colorants will greatly increase its potentiality for applying as functional natural colorants in the future.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.279-285
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• 2009

Antioxidant and antimicrobial efficiency were investigated for: i) water extract of green tea(Camellia sinensis), ii) water extract of middle drying megmoondong(Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang) and iii) water extract of drying megmoondong. The electron donating ability of the green tea(Camellia sinensis) and drying megmoondong(Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang) extract were 88 and 79, respectively, while that of the middle drying megmoondong extract showed low levels. The relative inhibitory abilities against lipid peroxidase were: green tea(Camellia sinensis) extract > drying megmoondong(Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang) extract > middle drying megmoondong extract. The green tea(Camellia sinensis) extract showed the strongest antimicrobial effect against Staphylococcus aureus. The middle drying(Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang) and drying megmoondong extracts showed no antimicrobial effect against Staphylococcus aureus. The green tea(Camellia sinensis) extract had the strongest antimicrobial effect against Escherichia coli. The middle drying megmoondong(Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang) and drying megmoondong extracts showed no antimicrobial effect against Escherichia coli.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.325-331
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• 2008

This study was carried to investigate the efficiency of antimicrobial plant extracts as natural preservative in the cosmetic formulations. Ethanol extracts of different plants were tested using the disc diffusion (paper disc) method and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method for their antimicrobial activity against the common poultry pathogens. Terminalia chebula and Rhus japonica (gallut) extracts exhibited antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. Cinnmomum cassia extract exhibited antifungal activity against Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger while the remaining plant extracts showed no activity. A study of the preservative efficacy of the cosmetic formular containing the T. chebula, R. japonica and C. cassia extracts demonstrated sufficient preservative efficacy against bacteria and eukaryotic test microbes. Also, the cosmetic formulations containing antimicrobial plant extracts more effectively inhibited the microoranisms than the mixture of traditional chemical preservatives. These results suggest that the mixture of antimicrobial plant extracts, T. chebula, R. japonica and C. cassia is incorporated as preservative in the cosmetic formulation and the mixture have considerable effect on its efficacy.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.63 no.6
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• pp.435-439
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• 2019

An efficient one pot multicomponent synthesis of pyrimidinone derivatives of Biginelli type is described. 4-amino-6-aryl-pyrimidine-5-carbonitrile molecules were synthesized efficiently via three-component Biginelli-type condensation of aldehyde, malononitrile, and semicarbazone as urea substituent in the presence of a catalytic amount of PEG-400 as green medium under microwave irradiation. The reactions proceeded efficiently in the presence of microwave radiation to afford the desired products in good to excellent yields. Products have been confirmed by IR, and NMR spectral analysis. All the molecules were tested for their antimicrobial activity against E. coli, S. aureus, P. aeruginosa and C. tropicalis. Some of the compounds have shown moderate to good inhibition efficiency against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The potent activity was observed against the fungal species with minimum inhibition concentration 12.5 ㎍/mL.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.7
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• pp.647-650
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• 2009

Using 200 porcine colon tissues, the efficiencies of three isolation methods of Campylobacter from porcine intestines were compared: Method 1, direct streaking of colon mucosa; Method 2, direct inoculation of intestinal contents with a swab; Method 3, inoculation of pre-enriched medium. A total of 460 Campylobacter isolates were obtained from 178 samples (89%) by direct streaking of colon mucosa, 142 samples (71%) by direct streaking of a swab, and 94 samples (47%) by pre-enrichment of intestinal contents in Preston broth. Direct streaking of colon mucosa was superior to the other two isolation methods, in terms of rapidity and higher efficiency. When isolates were identified with various biochemical tests and PCRs specific to 16s rRNA, mapA, and ceuE, C. coli was the predominant species (87%) in porcine, whereas the rest of the isolates were identified as C. lanienae.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.1537-1546
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• 2022

Staphylococcus aureus is a cause of high mortality in humans and therefore it is necessary to prevent its transmission and reduce infections. Our goals in this research were to investigate the frequency of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) in Taif, Saudi Arabia, and assess the relationship between the phenotypic antimicrobial sensitivity patterns and the genes responsible for resistance. In addition, we examined the antimicrobial efficiency and application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) against MRSA isolates. Seventy-two nasal swabs were taken from patients; MRSA was cultivated on Mannitol Salt Agar supplemented with methicillin, and 16S rRNA sequencing was conducted in addition to morphological and biochemical identification. Specific resistance genes such as ermAC, aacA-aphD, tetKM, vatABC and mecA were PCR-amplified and resistance plasmids were also investigated. The MRSA incidence was ~49 % among the 72 S. aureus isolates and all MRSA strains were resistant to oxacillin, penicillin, and cefoxitin. However, vancomycin, linezolid, teicoplanin, mupirocin, and rifampicin were effective against 100% of MRSA strains. About 61% of MRSA strains exhibited multidrug resistance and were resistant to 3-12 antimicrobial medications (MDR). Methicillin resistance gene mecA was presented in all MDR-MRSA strains. Most MDR-MRSA contained a plasmid of > 10 kb. To overcome bacterial resistance, AgNPs were applied and displayed high antimicrobial activity and synergistic effect with penicillin. Our findings may help establish programs to control bacterial spread in communities as AgNPs appeared to exert a synergistic effect with penicillin to control bacterial resistance.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.378-387
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• 2009

This research compared three methods for producing and processing nanocomposite polypropylene filament yarns with permanent antimicrobial efficiency. The three methods used to mix antimicrobial agents based on silver nano particles with PP were as follows: 1) mixing of PP powder and inorganic nanocomposite filler with the appropriate concentration using a twin-screw extruder and preparing granules, 2) method 1 with a singlerather than twin-screw extruder, and 3) producing the masterbatch by a twin-screw extruder and blending it with PP in the melt spinning process. All pure polypropylene samples and other combined samples had an acceptable spinnability at the spinning temperature of $240^{\circ}C$ and take-up speed of 2,000 m/min. After producing as-spun filament yarns by a pilot plant, melt spinning machine, the samples were drawn, textured and finally weft knitted. The physical and structural properties (e.g., linear density, tenacity, breaking elongation, initial modulus, rupture work, shrinkage and crystallinity) of the as-spun and drawn yarns with constant and variable draw ratios (the variable draw ratio was used to gain a constant breaking elongation of 50%) were investigated and compared, while DSC, SEM and FTIR techniques were used to characterize the samples. Finally, the antibacterial efficiency of the knitted samples was evaluated. The experimental results revealed that the crystallinity reduction of the as-spun yarn obtained from method 1 (5%) was more than that of method 2 (3%), while the crystallinity of the modified as-spun yarns obtained with method 3 remained unchanged compared to pure yarn. However, the drawing procedure compensated for this difference. By applying methods 2 and 3, the drawing generally improved the tenacity and modulus of the modified fibers, whereas method 1 degraded the constant draw ratio. Although the biostatic efficiency of the nanocomposite yarns was excellent with all three methods, the modified fabrics obtained from methods 1 and 2 showed a higher bioactivity.