Author(s): Panda N, Nandi S, Chakraborty T
The present study is an attempt to isolate and characterize the bioactive compounds produced by bacteria inhabiting in the soil together with the optimization of yield of the compounds. For the purpose, soil samples from different locations were collected and screened for isolation of soil bacteria. The property of the bacteria to secrete bioactive compounds was tested by observing the zone of inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus, an indicator organism. Morphological identification of these bacteria has been carried out. Furthermore, a suitable method of optimization was applied to improve the productivity of bioactive substances and the productivity has been statistically validated using Taguchi methods. Preliminary isolation of these bioactive substances is carried out on the basis of their solubility characteristics. Further extensive isolation and partial characterization of these bioactive substances were performed using RP-HPLC. The isolated bioactive compounds were further tested by mass Spectra for determination of their purity and molecular weight.