Antibacterial Activities of Actinomycete Isolates Collected from Soils of Rajshahi, Bangladesh

This study was performed to isolate actinomycete colonies having antibacterial activity from soil samples collected from different places around Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Thirty actinomycete colonies were isolated in pure culture from five soil samples using Starch-casein-nitrate-agar medium. The isolates were grouped in five color series based on their aerial mycelia color and screened for their antibacterial activity against a range of test bacteria. Sixteen isolates (53.3%) were found to have moderate to high activity against four gram-positive and four gram-negative bacteria. Since many isolates showed inhibitory activity against indicator bacteria, it is suggestive that Bangladeshi soil could be an interesting source to explore for antibacterial secondary metabolites.