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Malaysia is among many tropical countries where stingless bees and their products are abundantly available and extensively used for human health. Stingless bee honey can be collected either directly from bee farms or harvested from tropical forests. Stingless bee products, especially honey, are traditionally consumed mainly by the local Asian people for therapeutic purposes. This study was conducted to determine the antibacterial properties of Malaysian stingless bee honey from the species Trigona itama and Trigona thoracica against selected Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacterial samples. Agar well diffusion and micro broth dilution assays were conducted to determine the antibacterial activity of four stingless bee honey samples from the Trigona genus. The Trigona honey of the four samples has demonstrated vital zones of inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 9144), Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC 14990), Streptococcus pyogenes (ATCC 19615), Escherichia coli (ATCC 85218), Salmonella Typhi (ATCC 19430), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 10273). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values of the four honey samples against S. aureus, S. epidermidis, S. pyogenes, E. coli, Salmonella Typhi, and K. pneumonia were successfully obtained at lower honey concentrations but higher sample dilutions. This study justified that Malaysian stingless bee honey has broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria and possesses promising antibacterial therapy for future health regimens.

Cholera, caused by V. cholerae, needs rapid diagnosis because of its threat for rapid spread. Recent molecular diagnosis by PCR assay is more advantageous than the conventional methods. The bottleneck in PCR diagnosis lies in the delay in template DNA extraction of V. cholerae, which is the basic requirement. This study describes a simple, less expensive, and rapid template DNA extraction method to lessen the total time for PCR diagnosis of V. cholerae. To obtain template DNA, our method involves boiling of V. cholerae suspension in distilled water (takes 18-24 hours) instead of boiling the suspension in broth medium, which is a lengthy process (takes 72 hours). The validation of our template DNA was conducted using 40 V. cholerae O1 strains that were confirmed previously, and its usefulness was checked on 20 clinical strains of V. cholerae O1 isolated from acute diarrhea patients; results were compared with those of conventional template DNA. The analysis of our template DNA in simplex and quadruplex PCR assays revealed the presence of ctxA, tcpA (El Tor), rfb (O1), ToxR, ctxB, zot, ace,rst , and OmpW genes in V. cholerae O1. The comparison of the results of PCR assays using the template DNA from both sources showed equal results and matched correctly. The sensitivity of our template DNA was 1.5x103 CFU per assay. Our template DNA extraction method is simple, less expensive, and rapid, and it can be employed for early diagnosis of V. cholerae during outbreaks, in research laboratories, and in hospital setups where infrastructures are available.

Objective. The purpose of this narrative review was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of garlic (Allium sativum), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), oregano (Origanum vulgare), turmeric (Curcuma longa), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) and cinnamon (Cinnamomum species) for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Campylobacter jejuni, and Salmonella typhimurium.Methods. The scientific electronic database PubMed was utilized to review the current literature. The inclusion criteria consisted of academic journal articles that were available as free full-text studies published between 2007-2018.Results. In total, 2,923 articles were found and 71 of those met the preset criteria. The literature review provided evidence that garlic (Allium sativum), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), oregano (Origanum vulgare), turmeric (Curcuma longa), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) and cinnamon (Cinnamomum species) may be effective for the suppression of growth of antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Campylobacter jejuni, and Salmonella typhimurium.Conclusion. Antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria are a major issue in the healthcare field. Natural plant-based products may provide a benefit as an adjunct therapy or monotherapy for certain strains of bacteria that are antibiotic resistant.