Considering the economic importance of the probiotics, industrial production of their biomass became important. Cane molasses, as an industrial byproduct, was used in this study to design a medium ...for biomass overproduction of a functionally probiotic strain, designated as
Lactobacillus plantarum
strain RPR42. The results showed that strain RPR42 can be best grown anaerobically in 22.5% cane molasses solution. Also, the findings of the single variable at a time experiments and either factorial design indicated that the optimal growth of strain RPR42 can be observed when beef extract, casein hydrolysate, and yeast extract were added into the medium. The central composite design experiments suggested a medium which was designated as cane molasses medium (CMM). Eventually, this medium contained 21.9% cane molasses, 30.72 g/L of a combined mixture of nitrogenous compounds: 0.0754% of a 1:1:1 mixture of polysorbates 20, 60, and 80, and 18.53 gr/L of the combined minerals. Such an optimized cane molasses-based medium supported a significant biomass production since a considerably high cell density, 13.8 g/L/24 h of dry biomass, of the strain was produced. Hence, cane molasses can be regarded as a promising substrate for industrial production purposes.
Nitrogen source has a vital role for the efficient growth of lactobacilli. The effects of cheese whey, corn steep liquor, and wheat germ extract on the growth of
L. plantarum
strain RPR42 in cane ...molasses-based media was evaluated using various approaches of design of experiments. Our results showed that such protein-rich agricultural by-products significantly increase the biomass production of the strain RPR42 in cane molasses-based media. The most affecting nitrogenous material was cheese whey followed by CSL and the minor effect was reported for wheat germ extract as revealed in factorial and Box–Behnken design experiments. The replacement of costly beef extract and yeast extract with a defined mixtures of the above nitrogenous agricultural by-products in cane molasses-based medium led to production of up to 12.64 g/L/24 h of dry biomass of strain RPR42. A detectable cell density of strain RPR42 (~ 9.81 × 10
9
CFU/mL 24 h) which was observed in such an economic medium showed that the large-scale production of the strain RPR42 tend to be feasible at significantly low costs.
Considering the importance of the poultry industry and the increasing interest in alternative growth promoters, probiotics are considered as a potential candidate for use in the poultry industry. In ...this study, Lactobacillus species were isolated from 21 rectal swabs of 11 healthy 6-day-old and 10 healthy 21-day-old chickens and their fecal and feed samples. The isolates were characterized and their probiotic characteristics, including resistance to gastric acid and bile salts, biofilm formation and adherence to epithelium or mucus, amylase and protease activity and production of inhibitory compounds, were assessed. From 31 acid and bile resistant lactobacilli, only 2 Lactobacillus brevis and 1 Lactobacillus reuteri strains showed significant probiotic properties. These isolates indicated detectable attachment to Caco-2 cells and significant antibacterial activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens. Additionally, phenotypic and genotypic diversity of lactobacilli isolates were studied by Phene Plate (PhP) system (PhP-LB) and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR, respectively. PhP-LB results of 24 L. brevis isolates showed a high phenotypic variation among the isolates. In comparison, results of RAPD-PCR highlighted a low diversity. Therefore, it seems that combination of the 2 techniques (PhP and RAPD-PCR) could result in a significant discriminatory power than each of them used alone.
Paintings are essential components of cultural heritage all over the world. They consist of organic molecules such as oils, waxes, gums, sugars, polysaccharides, and proteins that can support the ...growth of various microorganisms. In this study, in order to identify the microbial community possibly involved in deterioration of paintings in the storeroom of Mouze Makhsus, culturable bacteria and fungi colonizing the paintings were isolated. The identification of isolated bacteria and fungi was performed through morphological analyses and either PCR amplification and DNA sequencing of 16srRNA gene, for bacteria, and ITS genomic region, for fungi. Based on the obtained 16S rRNA gene sequence of bacteria and ITS region sequence of fungi, a phylogenetic tree was constructed using the Neighbor-Joining method. The study also evaluated, in vitro, the cellulolytic activity of the bacterial and fungal isolates. The results highlighted the diverse array of microbial groups colonizing the sampled paintings. Culture-based analyses revealed 27 isolates of bacteria and fungi. Detected fungi fell in seven genera including Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium, Alternaria, Curvularia, Chaetomium, and Trametes. The majority of isolated bacteria belong to Bacillus genus, whereas to a lesser extent Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, Paenibacillus, Arthrobacter, Heyndrickxia, Priestia, and Rathayibacter were isolated. Qualitative and quantitative assessment of cellulolytic enzyme production showed that the fungal isolates present important cellulolytic activity, and they are potentially dangerous to the paintings.
The recent viral infection disease pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has resulted in a global public health crisis. Iran, as one of the countries that ...reported over five million infected cases by September 2021, has been concerned with the urgent development of effective vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. In this paper, we report the results of a study on potency and safety of an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate (FAKHRAVAC) in a preclinical study so as to confirm its potential for further clinical evaluation. Here, we developed a pilot-scale production of FAKHRAVAC, a purified inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus vaccine candidate that induces neutralizing antibodies in Balb/c mice, guinea pigs, rabbits, and non-human primates (Rhesus macaques—RM). After obtaining ethical code of IR.IUMS.REC.1399.566, immunizations of animals were conducted by using either of three different vaccine dilutions; High (H): 10 μg/dose, Medium (M): 5 μg/dose, and Low (L): 1 μg/dose, respectively. In the process of screening for viral seeds, viral strains that resulted in the most severe clinical manifestation in patients have been isolated for vaccine development. The viral seed produced the optimal immunity against SARS-CoV-2 virus, which suggests a possible broader neutralizing ability against SARS-CoV-2 strains. The seroconversion rate at the H-, M-, and L-dose groups of all tested animals reached 100% by 28 days after immunization. These data support the eligibility of FAKHRAVAC vaccine candidate for further evaluation in a clinical trial.
Several coelomycetous taxa were isolated from soils of three hypersaline lakes in Iran. Phylogenetic analyses based on LSU, ITS, and β-tubulin sequence data placed six of the new isolates into three ...clades in
Neocamarosporium
(Neocamarosporiaceae, Pleosporales). The six strains are distinct from other species of
Neocamarosporium
and are introduced as three new species, viz.
N. jorjanensis
,
N. persepolisi
, and
N. solicola
. Growth of these taxa and of
N. chichastianum
in media containing various NaCl and MgCl
2
concentrations indicates that
Neocamarosporium
species are halotolerant.
Neocamarosporium
species have an association with halophytes in marine or saline habitats. Illustrations, descriptions, and taxonomic notes are provided for
Neocamarosporium
species.
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