Flesh flies of the genus Sarcophaga (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) are carrion-breeding, necrophagous insects important in medical and veterinary entomology as potential transmitters of pathogens to humans and animals. Our aim was to analyse the diversity of gut-associated bacteria in wild-caught larvae and adult flesh flies using culture-dependent and culture-independent methods. Analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences from cultured isolates and clone libraries revealed bacteria affiliated to Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes in the guts of larval and adult flesh flies. Bacteria cultured from larval and adult flesh fly guts belonged to the genera Acinetobacter, Bacillus, Budvicia, Citrobacter, Dermacoccus, Enterococcus, Ignatzschineria, Lysinibacillus, Myroides, Pasteurella, Proteus, Providencia and Staphylococcus. Phylogenetic analysis showed clone sequences of the genera Aeromonas, Bacillus, Bradyrhizobium, Citrobacter, Clostridium, Corynebacterium, Ignatzschineria, Klebsiella, Pantoea, Propionibacterium, Proteus, Providencia, Serratia, Sporosarcina, Weissella and Wohlfahrtiimonas. Species of clinically significant genera such as Ignatzschineria and Wohlfahrtiimonas spp. were detected in both larvae and adult flesh flies. Sequence analysis of 16S rRNA gene libraries supported culture-based results and revealed the presence of additional bacterial taxa. This study determined the diversity of gut microbiota in flesh flies, which will bolster the ability to assess microbiological risk associated with the presence of these flies. The present data thereby establish a platform for a much larger study.

Nanoparticles, the elementary structures of nanotechnology, are important materials for fundamental studies and variety of applications. The different sizes and shapes of these materials exhibit unique physical and chemical properties than their bulk materials. There is a great interest in obtaining well-dispersed, ultrafine, and uniform nanoparticles to delineate and utilize their distinct properties. Nanoparticle synthesis can be achieved through a wide range of materials utilizing a number of methods including physical, chemical, and biological processes with various precursors from liquids and solids. There is a growing need to prepare environmentally friendly nanoparticles that do not produce toxic wastes in their process synthesis protocol. This kind of synthesis can be achieved by green environment benign processes, which happen to be mostly of a biological nature. Microorganisms are one of the most attractive and simple sources for the synthesis of different types of nanoparticles. This review is an attempt to provide the up-to-date information on current status of nanoparticle synthesis by different types of microorganisms such as fungi, yeast, bacteria, cyanobacteria, actinomycete, and algae. The probable biosynthesis mechanism and conditions for size/shape control are described. Various applications of microbially synthesized nanoparticles are summarized. They include antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, larvicidal, medical imaging, biosensor, and catalytic applications. Finally, limitations and future prospects for specific research are discussed.

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract of invasive land snail Achatina fulica is known to harbor metabolically active bacterial communities. In this study, we assessed the bacterial diversity in the different regions of GI tract of Giant African snail, A. fulica by culture-independent and culture-dependent methods. Five 16S rRNA gene libraries from different regions of GI tract of active snails indicated that sequences affiliated to phylum γ-Proteobacteria dominated the esophagus, crop, intestine, and rectum libraries, whereas sequences affiliated to Tenericutes dominated the stomach library. On phylogenetic analysis, 30, 27, 9, 27, and 25 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) from esophagus, crop, stomach, intestine, and rectum libraries were identified, respectively. Estimations of the total bacterial diversity covered along with environmental cluster analysis showed highest bacterial diversity in the esophagus and lowest in the stomach. Thirty-three distinct bacterial isolates were obtained, which belonged to 12 genera of two major bacterial phyla namely γ-Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. Among these, Lactococcus lactis and Kurthia gibsonii were the dominant bacteria present in all GI tract regions. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis indicated significant differences in bacterial load in different GI tract regions of active and estivating snails. The difference in the bacterial load between the intestines of active and estivating snail was maximum. Principal component analysis (PCA) of terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism suggested that bacterial community structure changes only in intestine when snail enters estivation state.

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