Antibacterial Compounds from Bacteria Isolated from Saudi Arabian Thermal Springs

Recently, the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infections has been considered one of the global health crises that threaten communities. The rise and dissemination of resistance within bacterial pathogens make the effectiveness of antibiotics decline gradually over time. As a result, the search for novel antibiotics from different natural sources has increased. Bacteria, for example, have the ability to yield antibiotics. One important habitat that has yet to be fully exploited for antibiotic-producing bacteria is geothermal springs. Hot springs have been used for spas as well as for treating dermatological infections.

The aim of this study is to discover antibacterial compounds from thermal springs.

Seventeen water samples were collected from four different thermal springs in Saudi Arabia. Microbiological assays were used to assess the antibacterial activities of bacterial colonies against antibiotic- resistant and susceptible bacterial strains and 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to identify the genus and species of these antibiotic-producing bacteria. Chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques were utilized to isolate the active compounds and aid their structural elucidation. Four compounds were isolated from bacteria; N-acetyltryptamine (1), isovaleric acid (2), ethyl-4-ethoxybenzoate (3) and phenylacetic acid (4). Compounds 1, 2 and 4 were isolated from Bacillus pumilus and 3 was from Bacillus licheniformis. The outcomes of the MIC assays showed that all isolates had mild antibacterial activities against Gram-positive pathogens (between 128 mg/L and 512 mg/L compared to the control) and compound 2 had mild activity against E. coli.

 

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Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Publikationsverlauf

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
16. November 2023