Pharmaceutical potentials of bacteria from saltpans of Goa

Abstract

Solar salt pans consist of a series of inter linked pans where gradients of salinity occur due to evaporation of seawater. Salinity in these ponds reaches as high as 400 psu during the peak salt-producing season and as low as 5 psu during the monsoons. Salt pans are extreme environments which inhabit organisms that thrive high salinities, temperatures and withstand severe solar radiations. Such organisms are capable of producing interesting metabolites which may benefit mankind. Salt pan water, salt and sediment samples were collected from nine saltpans from North and South Goa to isolate bacteria. The bacterial extracts have been screened for various biological activities to ascertain their biomedical importance. A total of 63 out of 1178 cultures were found to be active showing antioxidant, anti gastric ulcer, antifungal, memory enhancing activity and activity against neurological disorders, anticancer, amylase, amylase inhibitory, protease and protease inhibitory activity. This study highlights the biomedical potential of bacteria from salt pans and encourages further exploration of such bacteria for therapeutic activities.