Characterization of Phenotype and Genotype of Biofield Treated Enterobacter aerogenes

What is it about?

Enterobacter aerogenes (E. aerogenes) has been commonly described as a versatile opportunistic pathogen in hospital infections. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the impact of biofield treatment on E. aerogenes for its phenotypic and genotypic characteristics. E. aerogenes bearing ATCC 13048 (American Type Culture Collection) was procured from Bangalore Genei, in sealed pack and divided into control and treated groups. Treated group was subjected to Mr. Trivedi’s biofield treatment and analyzed for antimicrobial susceptibility, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), biochemical reactions, and biotype using automated MicroScan Walk-Away® system. In addition, treated group of E. aerogenes was evaluated for DNA polymorphism by Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and 16S rDNA sequencing to establish the phylogenetic relationship of E. aerogenes with different closely related bacterial species. Antimicrobial susceptibility results showed an alteration of 14.28% among twenty-eight tested antimicrobials. Similarly, 15.65% tested antimicrobials showed an alteration in MIC values. Chloramphenicol showed improved sensitivity i.e. resistant to susceptible after biofield treatment, with the support of decreased MIC by two folds (i.e. >16 to ≤8 µg/mL). Norfloxacin also showed decrease MIC by two folds (i.e. 8 to ≤4 µg/mL) as compared to control. Biofield treatment showed an impact on biochemical reactions (9.09%) followed by a change in biotype number (7770 5272) in treated group with respect to control (7770 5372). Using RAPD analysis, sample showed an average range of 4 to 42% of polymorphism, while 16S rDNA study showed that treated sample was detected as Kluyvera cryocrescens (GenBank Accession Number: AM184245) with 97% identity of gene sequencing data, which was nearest homolog species to Enterobacter aerogenes strain: C1111 (Accession No. AB244467). These results suggest that Mr. Trivedi’s unique biofield treatment can alter the antimicrobial sensitivity pattern, thus it can be used as alternate energy medicine in future.

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Why is it important?

Enterobacter aerogenes (E. aerogenes) is a common organism of most of the hospital-acquired infections. Adaptive capability of E. aerogenes is remarkable and can easily acquire resistance to against β-lactam antibiotics [1]. During last five years, it has shown that E. aerogenes isolates are having natural resistance against aminopenicillins, and express an extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL), which results resistance to β-lactam antibiotics [2]. However, E. aerogenes exhibits acquired resistance against different categories of antimicrobial agents. General resistance mechanisms exhibited by E. aerogenes involves membrane permeability, p-glycoprotein efflux pump, and enzyme degradation against carbapenems, fluoroquinolones, quinolones, tetracycline, and chloramphenicol [3]. Currently, colistin, and polymyxin antibiotic have been preferred as alternative drugs against Gram-negative pathogens, due to the extended resistance of Gram-negative bacteria against almost all antibiotics [4]. Recently, colistin in antibiotic therapy shows serious toxicity and associated adverse effects like neurotoxicity and nephrotoxicity [5]. Because of all the associated side effects and failure of drug treatment therapy, alternate treatment approach is required. Recently, an alternate treatment is known as biofield energy and is reported that inhibits the growth of bacterial cultures [6]. Biofield is the name given to the electromagnetic field that permeates and surrounds living organisms [7]. It is referred as biologically produced electromagnetic and subtle energy field that provides regulatory and communication functions within the human organism. Various internal physiological processes such as blood flow, brain, heart function, etc. that generate biofield. Biomagnetic fields around the human body can be measured using different techniques [8]. Researchers have attempted different biological studies and effects of biofield on various biomolecules such as proteins, antibiotics [9], and conformational change in DNA [10], bacterial cultures [11] etc. Thus, it can be concluded that human can to harness the energy from environment or universe and can transmit into any living or nonliving object(s) around the Universe. The objects always receive the energy and responding to useful way that is called biofield energy. Mr. Trivedi’s unique biofield treatment has been well known and studied in the field of material science [12-14], agricultural science [15-17], and biotechnology [18]. Mr. Trivedi’s unique biofield treatment is also known as The Trivedi Effect®, which was also reported in altering the susceptibility of antimicrobials against pathogenic and multidrug resistant microbes [19-21]. After consideration of the clinical significance of E. aerogenes and significant impact of Mr. Trivedi’s biofield treatment on microbes, authors evaluated the effect of biofield treatment on E. aerogenes followed by genotyping of treated organism. Genotyping was performed using strain differentiation and distinctive polymorphism using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique of random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis (RAPD) and 16S rDNA sequencing.

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