EMPLOYABILITY OF ADVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING TO EFFECTIVELY COUNT AND CLASSIFY THE BACTERIAL COLONIES

Specification of Bacterial Colonies is needed in many fields, such as clinical analysis, biomedical examination for anticipation of severe illnesses, and the drug industry to avoid tainting items. Existing Bacterial Colony counter frameworks count Bacterial Colony physically, which is a tedious, less effective and dreary cycle. Henceforth, mechanization for calculating bacterial settlement was required. The proposed strategy counts these settlements naturally utilizing picture handling strategies. This strategy will give a more superior level of precision in the counting of bacterial provinces. The proposed method takes a picture of bacterial settlement and converts it into grayscale. Otsu thresholding is applied for the division of the image, further its change into a double shot. From that point onward, morphological activities are used to tidy up the picture by eliminating commotion and superfluous pixels. Distance and watershed changes are applied to double vision to make parts among covered and joint microscopic organisms. Locale properties and marking data of fragmented picture is utilized for counting of the bacterial province.

Effects of Preservatives Added in Cookies on Intestinal Bacteria

Introduction: An essential thing for human survival is food which provides nutritional support for the body or for pleasure. All the food used today has some preservatives, except our own garden plants. Preservatives prevent food spoilage from microorganisms but it will inhibit the growth of bacteria and fungi. Antimicrobial preservatives are the preservatives which inhibit the growth of fungi and bacteria. Methods of preserving foods have been used for centuries and include natural techniques such as smoking fish and meat as well as adding salts. Aim: The main aim of the study is to find the effects of preservatives added in cookies on intestinal bacteria. Materials and Method: Take a sample of 10 biscuits. Crush and mix 10 gms in 10 ml of sterile saline. soak for 30 mins and centrifuge and take the supernatant. Transfer 1 ml to each tube and add the selected organisms (lactobacilli). Add 10 microlitre of the selected organism (lactobacilli) to the supernatant. Hold for 30 mins and transfer 10 microlitre to BHI and count the CFU after incubation for 12 hours. Results and Discussion: After 12 hrs of incubation, colonies are formed. Using colony counter app colonies are counted. Biscuits 4 showed the highest growth of colonies of 797. The control of the bacteria shows confluence growth where the unlimited colonies are formed. This indicates the presence of antimicrobial activity on preservatives added in biscuits. This antimicrobial activity affects the health of the oral cavity and intestine. Conclusion: From the above study, it is evident that the antimicrobial activity of preservatives that are added in biscuits could affect the health of oral cavity and intestine.

EFFECTIVENESS OF CHEWING MARSHMALLOW CONTAINING BETEL CHEW ON SALIVARY Streptococcus mutans IN 12 YEARS OLD CHILDREN OF SMPN 29 PALEMBANG

Marshmallow is a favored type of soft candy among children and adults. Betel chew added to marshmallow was reported containing antibacterial substances. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of chewing marshmallow containing betel chew on salivary S. mutans in 12 years old children. This experimental research was done with pretest and posttest control group design involving 30 subjects with DMFT range 3-5. Subjects were divided into group 1 (marshmallow containing betel chew) and group 2 (plain marshmallow). Saliva was collected before and after chewed marshmallow containing betel chew and plain marshmallow. Streptococcus mutans colonies were evaluated with colony counter. Data were analysed using pair T-test & independent T-tests. Paired-t test showed that the number of S. mutans colonies was significantly reduced after chewed marshmallow containing betel chew p=0,00 (p

EFFECTIVITY OF 50% ETHANOL EXTRACT OF CAMELLIA SINENSIS TEA LEAVES AS HAND ANTISEPTIC

Introduction: : Practicing hand hygiene is a way to control an infection. The recent COVID-19 pandemic, hand hygiene has become the necessity. Using antiseptic which contain chemical active ingredients causes skin problem. Camellia sinensis is a natural ingredient which its antimicrobial properties is due to the presence of catechin. The study was aimed to determine the effectivity of ethanol extract of Camellia sinensis tea leaves as hand antiseptic. Methods: This research was a comparative experimental analytic to 32 respondents conducted in the Microbiology Laboraroty of Faculty Medicine and Health Sciences–Atma Jaya Jakarta Catholic University of Indonesia. Sampling was carried out by taking bacterial swabs on the right palms. Followed by dilution using serial dilution method and inoculated onto nutrient agar using the spread plate technic. After incubation at 37oC overnight the bacterial colonies were calculated using colony counter within a range of 30-300 colonies per plate. Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney was used for data analysis. Results: The total number of bacterial colonies after sanitizing using 50% ethanol extract of Camellia sinensis tea leaves was reduced by 55.04% (p=0.003). Meanwhile, 70% alcohol curb the bacterial colonies by 76.84% (p=0.000). The comparison of the effectivity of 50% ethanol extract of Camellia sinensistea leaves versus 70% alcohol as hand antiseptic was insignificance (p=0.300). Conclusion: 50% ethanol extract of Camellia sinensis tea leaves showed activity against hand’s microorganisms. However, the percentages of Camellia sinensis extract might be increased so as to achieve the effectivity of 70% alcohol.

New insights into the standard method of assessing bacterial filtration efficiency of medical face masks

Based on the current knowledge of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission, wearing a mask has been recommended during the COVID-19 pandemic. Bacterial filtration efficiency (BFE) measurements enable designing and regulating medical masks to prevent bioaerosol dissemination; however, despite the simplicity of these measurements, several scientific questions remain unanswered regarding BFE tests. Here, we investigated (1) the impact of substituting 100-mm Petri dishes with 90-mm disposable Petri dishes, (2) the impact of colony-counting methods on the bioaerosol aerodynamic size, and (3) the impact of colony-counting methods on the total viable particle counts. We demonstrated that disposable 90-mm Petri dishes can be used to replace the 100-mm dishes. We also showed that an automatic high-resolution colony counter can be used to directly count viable particles on collection substrates and to measure the bioaerosol size parameters. Our results enable possible modernization of the outdated testing methods recommended in the US and European standards for BFE measurements. Specifically, use of a modernized colony counter should be clearly regulated and permitted to avoid the counting of positive holes. The median aerodynamic diameter appears to be the most relevant parameter for characterizing bioaerosol size.

Antimicrobial Efficacy of Vaccinium macrocarpon mouthwash against Steptococcus mutans in dental plaque of caries active children – A randomized controlled trial

Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) extracts have been found to be rich in polyphenols specifically, including flavonoids, that have been found to exhibit beneficial properties to human health. Considering the recent inclination in the preference of people towards herbal based products and remedies, and taking into account the possible side-effects of chlorhexidine, the current study was undertaken to comparatively evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of Vaccinium macrocarpon and chlorhexidine mouthwash on the Streptococcus mutans count in the dental plaque of caries, active children. The study follows a parallel design involving 50 children divided into two groups of 25 each - Group 1: chlorhexidine mouthwash; Group 2: cranberry mouthwash. The initial plaque samples and the samples were taken after 14 days were evaluated using a digital colony counter for determining the streptococcal colony count/ml. A statistically significant difference was found in both the groups with respect to the Streptococcal colony count when the intra-group comparison was made comparing the baseline values to the values after 14 days. However, no significant difference was seen in the percentage of reduction in the microbial CFU/ml between the two groups. Cranberry mouthwash can be considered to be an effective alternative to Chlorhexidine mouthwash, given its additional systemic effects apart from local beneficial effects in the oral region. Future scope in research should be aimed at evaluating its long term health benefits and any possible adverse effects.

Cemaran bakteri pada makanan pempek produksi rumah tangga dan pabrik pengolah makanan

Pempek merupakan makanan tradisional yang berasal dari Palembang. Makanan ini diproduksi oleh industri rumah tangga maupun pabrik pengolah makanan. Olahan ikan ini beresiko dicemari oleh bakteri Escherichia coli, Salmonella, dan Staphylococcus aureus. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui cemaran bakteri pada pempek yang dijual di pasaran kota Samarinda. Jenis penelitian yang digunakan adalah penelitian laboratorium. Teknik sampling yang digunakan yaitu random sampling. Jumlah sampel yang diperoleh sebanyak 20 sampel pempek, 10 sampel produksi industri rumah tangga dan 10 sampel produksi pabrik. Sampel kemudian dibawa ke laboratorium dan dilakukan pemeriksaan jumlah koloni dengan menggunakan colony counter. Hasil penghitungan Angka Lempeng Total (ALT) pada media Plate Count Agar (PCA) menunjukkan bahwa sebanyak 18 sampel (90%) yang terdiri dari 10 sampel pempek produksi pabrik dan 8 sampel pempek produksi rumahan mengandung cemaran mikroba yang tinggi (> 5x 104). Masyarakat disarankan memasak pempek hingga matang sebelum mengkonsumsi baik pempek produksi pabrik maupun produksi rumahan agar terhindar dari resiko cemaran bakteri patogen. Catatan PenerbitPoltekkes Kemenkes Kendari menyatakan tetap netral sehubungan dengan klaim dari perspektif atau buah pikiran yang diterbitkan dan dari afiliasi institusional manapun. PendanaanKajian terlaksana atas pembiayaan sukarela peneliti. Konflik KepentinganPara penulis menyatakan bebas dari konflik kepentingan. Berbagi DataData hasil kajian tersedia melalui permohonan kepada penulis koresponden. Kontribusi PenulisPara penulis tidak mendeklarasikan setiap kontribusinya.

In-Vitro Model of Scardovia wiggsiae Biofilm Formation and Effect of Nicotine

Recently, Scardovia wiggsiae has been reported to be strongly associated with caries formation. This study aimed to establish an in vitro model of S. wiggsiae biofilm and to investigate the effect of nicotine on S. wiggsiae colony-forming units (CFUs) growth. S. wiggsiae biofilm was grown overnight using brain-heart infusion (BHI) broth supplemented with 5 g of yeast extract/L (BHI-YE). The overnight culture was used as an inoculum to grow S. wiggsiae biofilm on standardized enamel and dentin samples. Samples were incubated with different nicotine concentrations (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 mg/mL) for 3 days. The dissociated biofilms were diluted, spiral plated on blood agar plates, and incubated for 24 h. CFUs/mL were quantified using an automated colony counter. A two-way ANOVA was used to compare the effect of different nicotine concentrations on S. wiggsiae CFUs. This study demonstrated that S. wiggsiae biofilm could be initiated and formed in vitro. Increased CFUs was observed through 0.5-4 mg/mL and 0.5-8 mg/mL of nicotine using enamel and dentin substrates, respectively. 16 and 32 mg/mL of nicotine were determined as the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), respectively. S. wiggsiae formed greater biofilm on enamel than dentin specimens in response to the nicotine stimulus. This study demonstrated the negative effect of smoking on increasing S. wiggsiae biofilm. Establishing S. wiggsiae biofilm in vitro may allow researchers in the future to have a better understanding of caries pathogenesis and bacterial interaction.

Effect of different bracket types on streptococcus mutans count in orthodontic patients using fluoridated toothpaste

Background: Plaque retention during fixed orthodontic therapy is an important cause of developing enamel demineralization. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of different brackets types on the count of Streptococcus Mutans in orthodontic patients using conventional fluoridated toothpaste. Materials and Methods: Plaque samples were collected from maxillary 1st premolar teeth of twenty right handed patients (using split mouth technique) before bonding, after 48 hrs of bonding using tooth brush only, and after 2 weeks of using fluoridated toothpaste. Stainless steel bracket was bonded on right first premolar while the left one was bonded with sapphire bracket. The calculation of the Streptococcus Mutans count was done using the plate counting method utilizing colony counter. The differences between the two types of brackets were determined using the Wilcoxon signed ranks test. Results: The median bacterial count on the right side was insignificantly higher than the left side; streptococcus mutans in the plaque sample around the sapphire brackets showed insignificantly less counts than around the stainless steel one, when the patients used tooth brush only or fluoridated toothpastes. Fluoridated toothpastes reduced streptococcus mutans insignificantly around both types of brackets. Conclusion: Fluoridated toothpaste acts effectively in reducing streptococcus mutans colony counts around sapphire and stainless steel brackets. Keywords: Streptococcus mutans, Stainless steel brackets, Sapphire brackets.