Abstract

Snail slime has been reported to have wound healing properties. The slime obtained from alien invasive agricultural pest Lissachatina fulica and indigenous agricultural pest Cryptozona bistrialis snails co-occurring in a single locality has been reported to show antimicrobial properties. The methodology involves the in vitro antimicrobial potency of both snails on bacterial strains Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli. The susceptibility of the strains to snail slime was assayed on the Nutrient Agar medium by the disc diffusion method, using concentrations of 25, 50 and 100%. The zone of inhibition was noted and the minimum inhibitory concentration was also evaluated. To explore the volatile compounds in slime that contribute to the antimicrobial effect, Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GCMS) was performed. Results revealed that 50% of snail slime showed the highest activity when measured the zone of inhibition against slime concentration. The slime of A. fulica was more effective to Klebsiella and Staphylococcus. No distinct zone observed in three strains namely Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus and Klebsiella but showed an indistinct but blurred zone towards E. coli. The GCMS results revealed the presence of many compounds that show antimicrobial potency. 2-Methyl nonadecane is a compound that is present exclusively in both A. fulica and C. bistrialis. But the compounds like 1,2Benzenedicarboxylic acid, butyl octyl ester, Cyclohexanol,1-butyl, Pentadecane,8-hexyl, Hexadecane,1-iodo,2-tert-Butyl-4,6-bis(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzyl) phenol were present solely in A. fulica. The compound squalene which is present both in the slimes of L. fulica and C. bistrialis also contribute much to this property. C. bistrialis even though it is not causing the death of the microbes, alters the speed and the spread of the microbial growth. Slime could be an alternative to expensive synthetic antimicrobial agents used in wound treatment if adequately explored.