Urinary tract infection (UTI) is among the most common bacterial infections and poses a significant healthcare burden. Escherichia coli is the most common cause of UTI accounting for up to 70 % and a variable contribution from Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae. To establish a complete diagnostic system, we have developed a single-tube multiplex PCR assay (mPCR) for the detection of the above-mentioned four major uropathogens. The sensitivity of the assay was found to be as low as 10(2) cfu/ml of cells. The mPCR evaluated on 280 clinical isolates detected 100 % of E. coli, P. aeruginosa, P. mirabilis and 95 % of K. pneumonia. The assay was performed on 50 urine samples and found to be specific and sensitive for clinical diagnosis. In addition, the mPCR was also validated on spiked urine samples using 40 clinical isolates to demonstrate its application under different strain used in this assay. In total, mPCR reported here is a rapid and simple screening tool that can compete with conventional biochemical-based screening assays that may require 2-3 days for detection.

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Terminalia arjuna is potential medicinal plant for the well-being of humans and animals since ancient times. Nowadays, synthetic antibiotics are widely used to fight microbial infectious diseases; the agar well diffusion method was used in this in vitro antibacterial study. A total of six microbial strains were tested for the antibacterial potential of bark extracts in solvents such as aqueous,chloroform and ethanol. Proteus mirabilis, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, Klebsiella pneumonia, Streptococcus mutans, and Staphylococcus aureus were acquired from a well-known research organization (ATCC). Finally, an aqueous extract of T. arjuna bark was found to have maximum zones of inhibition (8 mm) against P. mirabilis. Also, the chloroform extract of T. arjuna bark was found to have maximum zones of inhibition (8 mm) against K. pneumonia. Whereas, the ethanolic extract of T. arjuna was found to have significant inhibition zones against all the microbial strains. This ethanolic extract was subjected to GC-MS analysis based on the activity of zones of inhibition. In this GC-MS analysis we detected almost fifteen phyto-components and the majority of these phyto-components are alkaloids and flavonoids.