Munawar Sultana

• PhD
• Professor at University of Dhaka

In the present study cultivation-dependent and molecular methods were applied in combination to investigate the arsenite-oxidizing communities in enrichment cultures from arsenic and lead smelter-impacted soils with respect to both 16S rRNA and arsenite oxidase gene diversity. Enrichments with arsenite as the only electron donor resulted in complet...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly infectious enzootic disease caused by FMD virus. The complete genome sequence of a circulatory FMD virus (FMDV) serotype O isolated from Natore, Bangladesh, is reported here. Genomic analysis revealed antigenic heterogeneity within the VP1 region, a fragment deletion, and insertions at the 5′ untranslated re...

Arsenic (As) contaminated soils are enriched with arsenotrophic bacteria. The present study analyzes the microbiome and arsenotrophic genes-from As affected soil samples of Bhanga, Charvadrason and Sadarpur of Faridpur district in Bangladesh in summer (SFDSL1, 2, 3) and in winter (WFDSL1, 2, 3). Total As content of the soils was within the range of...

Background Arsenic (As), found in diverse ecosystems, poses major public health risks in various parts of the world. Arsenotrophic bacteria in contaminated environments help reduce toxicity by converting arsenite (AsIII) to less harmful arsenate (AsV). We assumed that Achromobacter aegrifaciens strains from As-contaminated tubewell water and soil w...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a great havoc in agri-business-based countries like Bangladesh, for which existing detection system limits the identification and differentiation of serotypes. In this study, an engineered platform was introduced incorporating serotype-specific FMDV VP1 (structural), serotype-independent VP2 (structural) and 3AB (non...

We report the draft genome of an arsenotrophic Achromobacter aegrifaciens BAS32 isolated from arsenic (As)-contaminated soil in Bangladesh. This genome contains several predicted gene clusters for As-conversion, namely, As resistance (arsHCsO), arsenite-oxidizing (aioBA), and arsenate-reducing (arsRCDAB) gene clusters along with antibiotic resistan...

We report the draft genome of Achromobacter aegrifaciens strain BAW48, a bacterium with a genome size of 6,877,653 bp. This genome comprises gene clusters for arsenic conversion, such as arsenic resistance (arsHCsO), arsenite oxidation (aioBA), and arsenate reduction (arsRCDAB), along with genes for heavy metal and antibiotic resistance.

Frequent vaccine failure leading to recurrent outbreaks of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) in livestock populations necessitates the development of a customizable vaccine platform comprising potential antigenic determinants of circulating lineages of FMD viruses. Artificially designed, chimaeric protein-based recombinant vaccines are novel approaches...

Frequent vaccine failure leading to recurrent outbreaks of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) in livestock populations necessitates the development of a customizable vaccine platform comprising potential antigenic determinants of circulating lineages of FMD viruses. Artificially designed, chimeric peptide-based recombinant vaccines are novel approaches t...

The simultaneous development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria due to metal exposure poses a significant threat to the environment and human health. This study explored how exposure to both arsenic and antibiotics affects the ability of an arsenite oxidizer, Achromobacter xylosoxidans CAW4, to transform arsenite and its antibiotic resistance pat...

Frequent vaccine failure leading to recurrent outbreaks of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) in livestock populations necessitates the development of a customizable vaccine platform comprising potential antigenic determinants of circulating lineages of FMD viruses. Artificially designed, chimeric peptide-based recombinant vaccines are novel approaches t...

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), the causative agent of the foot-and-mouth disease of cattle population possesses a rapid evolutionary rate. In Bangladesh, the first circulation of the O/ME-SA/SA-2018 lineage as a novel sublineage, MYMBD21 was reported from our laboratory. The first whole genome sequence of an isolate, BAN/MY/My-466/2021 (short...

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that uses quorum-sensing (QS) and biofilm formation to subvert antibiotic therapy. Antibiotic resistance has led to a demand for alternative methods of treatment, and destabilizing the LasR-OdDHL binding with inhibitors offers a potential solution. Methods: This study aimed to construc...

Emerging antibiotic resistance of Gram-positive bacteria leading to strikethrough infections are one of the major threats to global public health. This research aimed to determine different circulating Gram-positive bacterial species as well as their antibiotic resistance pattern along with their phylogenetic analysis. Fifty (50) Gram-positive isol...

Frequent vaccine failure leading to recurrent outbreaks of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) in livestock populations necessitates the development of a customizable vaccine platform comprising potential antigenic determinants of circulating lineages of FMD viruses. Artificially designed, chimeric peptide-based recombinant vaccines are novel approaches t...

Background Arsenic (As) and its species are major pollutants in ecological bodied including groundwater in Bangladesh rendering serious public health concern. Bacteria with arsenotrophic genes have been found in the aquifer, converting toxic arsenite [As (III)] to less toxic arsenate [As (V)] that is easily removed using chemical and biological tra...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cloven-hoofed animals is considered an economically devastating disease in endemic countries like Bangladesh, where the livestock sector contributes to a greater portion of the nation’s economy. The causative agent of the disease, foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), equipped with higher mutational frequency challeng...

Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) hinders the growth of the livestock industry in endemic countries like Bangladesh. The management and prevention of FMD are severely impacted by the high mutation rate and subsequent frequent generation of newer genotypes of the causative agent, Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV). The current study was conducted in nin...

Background Resistance to multiple drugs in Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPN) is an important issue in human and animal medicine. KPN phenotypic and genotypic aspects in poultry samples have not been comprehensively explored in Bangladesh. Methods This research focused on the prevalence of antibiotic resistance and the characterization of KPN in Banglade...

The multifactorial nature of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm development and genomic variabilities implicates its resistance to conventional antimicrobials and virulence. Therefore, genetic determinants need to be extensively studied to block the early steps of biofilm or already formed biofilms. In this study, a total of 20 multidrug resistant (MDR...

Arsenic (As) contamination of soils and waters is a major public health issue in many parts of Southeast Asia and around the world, notably in Bangladesh. As (V) is less bio-accumulative than As (III) and considered 60-200 times less toxic than As (III) and can also be removed easily by chemical and biological trappers. But chemical oxidation of As...

Metagenomic analysis provides in-depth understanding of microbe mediated Arsenic (As) metabolism. The present study aims atmetagenomic analysis of the distribution, diversity, and abundance of bacteriome in arsenic affected groundwater and surrounding soils collected fromBogra district of Bangladesh. Metagenomic DNA was extracted from two groundwat...

The multifactorial nature of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm development and genomic variabilities implicates its resistance to conventional antimicrobials and virulence. Therefore, genetic determinants need to be extensively studied to block the early steps of biofilm or already formed biofilms. In this study, a total of 20 multidrug resistant (MDR...

Background Staphylococcus spp. are the major causal agents of mastitis in dairy animals worldwide leading to profound economic losses and public health threats. Recently, Staphylococcus aureus has emerged as a multidrug resistant and zoonotic pathogen. This study aimed to characterize S. aureus in subclinical mastitis (SCM) milk samples of riverine...

Objectives Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a key opportunistic pathogen causing a wide range of community- and hospital-acquired infections in immunocompromised or catheterized patients. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of a multidrug resistant (MDR) P. aeruginosa DMC30b in order to elucidate the genetic diversity, molecular epidemiology, and...

Objectives Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a key opportunistic pathogen causing a wide range of community- and hospital-acquired infections in immunocompromised or catheterized patients. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of a multidrug resistant (MDR) P. aeruginosa DMC30b in order to elucidate the genetic diversity, molecular epidemiology, and...

Background Mastitis pathogenesis involves a wide range of opportunistic and apparently resident microorganims including bacteria, viruses and archaea. In dairy animals, microbes reside in the host, interact with environment and evade the host immune system, providing a potential for host-tropism to favor mastitis pathogenesis. To understand the hos...

Objective: Bangladesh requires simple and rapid diagnosis of Foot and Mouth disease (FMD), the most economically important disease of livestock animals including cattle, caused by FMD Virus (FMDV). The present study focused on developing an indirect Enzyme Linked immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) based platform utilizing VP1 capsid proteins of all three...

The emergence of novel coronavirus infectious disease-2019 (COVID-19) in December 2019, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has traumatized the whole world with the ongoing devastating pandemic. After droplet mediated transmission of infectious virus particle, and subsequent tissue tropism through the upper and lo...

Citation: Hasan, M.M.; Hoque, M.N.; Ahmed, F.; Haque, M.I.-M.; Sultana, M.; Hossain, M.A. Circulating Phylotypes of White Spot Syndrome Virus in Bangladesh and Their Virulence. Microorganisms 2022, 10, 191. https://doi.

This study reflects a highly economic and easy-to-use strategy for serological assessment of anti-FMDV immune status of vaccinated population. Further investigation will enhance the sensitivity and ser-specificity of the VP1-based immunoassay to develop a field-compatible and post-vaccination FMD-diagnosis for nationwide implementation

White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) has emerged as one of the most prevalent and lethal viruses globally, and infects both shrimps and crabs in the aquatic environment. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of WSSV in different ghers of Bangladesh and the virulence of the circulating phylotypes. We collected 360 shrimp (Penaeus monodon) and 1...

Objectives Nosocomial carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii is a challenge in the treatment of intensive care unit (ICU) patients. The presence of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) and mobile genetic elements can further complicate effects to combat antibiotic resistance in the post-antibiotic era. The aim of this study was to analyse th...

Arsenotrophic bacteria play an essential role in lowering arsenic contamination by converting toxic arsenite [As (III)] to less toxic and less bio-accumulative arsenate [As (V)]. The current study focused on the qualitative and electrocatalytic detection of the arsenite oxidation potential of an arsenite-oxidizing bacteria A. xylosoxidans BHW-15 (r...

Abstract The microbiome of the anaerobic digester (AD) regulates the level of energy production. To assess the microbiome diversity and composition in different stages of anaerobic digestion, we collected 16 samples from the AD of cow dung (CD) origin. The samples were categorized into four groups (Group-I, Group-II, Group-III and Group-IV) based o...

Background and aim: Fowl cholera (FC) caused by Pasteurella multocida is a highly contagious bacterial disease of global importance for poultry production. The severity and incidence of FC caused by P. multocida may vary considerably depending on several factors associated with the host (including species and age of infected birds), the environmen...

Artificially designed, chimeric peptide-based recombinant vaccines are novel approaches to combat the phylogenetically diverse Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) Virus (FMDV) strains. Among seven distinct serotypes, only serotype O and A are dominantly circulating in Bangladesh and neighbouring countries of Asia, where transboundary transmission, recurre...

Salmonella is one of the most important foodborne zoonotic pathogens, and becoming multidrug-resistant (MDR), which represents a serious public health concern worldwide. This study aimed to identify the circulating MDR strains of Salmonella through cutting edge molecular techniques including gene specific PCR, RAPD-PCR, ribosomal gene sequencing, a...

The microbiome of the anaerobic digester (AD) regulates the level of energy production. To assess the microbiome dysbiosis in different stages of anaerobic digestion, we analyzed 16 samples dividing into four groups (Group-I = 2; Group-II = 5; Group-III = 5 and Group-IV = 4) through whole metagenome sequencing (WMS). The physicochemical analysis re...

The novel coronavirus infectious disease-2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has traumatized the whole world with the ongoing devastating pandemic. A plethora of microbial domains including viruses (other than SARS-CoV-2), bacteria, archaea and fungi have evolved together and interact in complex m...

Objective: Antibiotic abuse has contributed to the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and has become a global concern. With a poorly regulated health system and a general lack of data, Bangladesh remains under high risk of AMR spread. To minimize the existing gap in the literature, this study was conducted to assess the knowledge, attitu...

We provide a mini review on the previously published study entitled "Microbiome Dynamics of Bovine Mastitis Progression and Genomic Determinants", where we reported the possible dynamic changes in microbiome compositions favored by their genomic functional potentials in different pathophysiological states of bovine mastitis. Using the cutting-edge...

Poultry originated Escherichia fergusonii (POEF), an emerging bacterial pathogen, causes a wide range of intestinal and extra-intestinal infections in the poultry industry which incurred significant economic losses worldwide. Chromosomal co-existence of antibiotics and metal resistance genes has recently been the focal point of POEF isolates beside...

The ongoing mutations in the structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2 are the major impediment for prevention and control of the COVID-19 disease. Presently we focused on evolution of the envelope (E) protein, one of the most enigmatic and less studied protein among the four structural proteins (S, E, M and N) associated with multitude of immunopathologic...

The emerged novel coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has created a global health crisis that warrants an accurate and detailed characterization of the rapidly evolving viral genome for understanding its epidemiology, pathogenesis, and containment. Here, we explored 61,485 sequences of the nucleocapsid (N) prote...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an economically devastating disease of the livestock worldwide and caused by the FMD virus (FMDV), which has seven immunologically distinct serotypes (O, A, Asia1, C, and SAT1–SAT3). Studies suggest that VP2 is relatively conserved among three surface-exposed capsid proteins (VP1–VP3) of FMDV, but the level of conser...

Introduction. Effective sanitation strategies for poultry farms require an appropriate selection of the disinfectant based on the contaminants present and their sensitivity to the disinfectants. Aim. The current study investigated the prevalence of streptococci/micrococci in poultry farms of Bangladesh and the efficacy of commercial disinfectants (...

Infecting millions of people, the SARS‐CoV‐2 is evolving at an unprecedented rate, demanding advanced and specified analytic pipeline to capture the mutational spectra. In order to explore mutations and deletions in the spike (S) protein — the most‐discussed protein of SARS‐CoV‐2 — we comprehensively analyzed 35,750 complete S protein‐coding sequen...

One of the six sublineages of the dominant O/ME-SA/Ind2001 lineage of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), Ind2001BD1 has already spread throughout 14 countries, including Bangladesh. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of the potential serotype O vaccine strain BAN/TA/Dh-301/2016, which has been shown to provide protection against all the...

The ongoing mutations in the structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2 is the major impediment for prevention and control of the COVID-19 disease. The envelope (E) protein of SARS-CoV-2 is a structural protein existing in both monomeric and homopentameric forms, associated with a multitude of functions including virus assembly, replication, dissemination,...

Pasteurella multocida is the etiologic agent of fowl cholera (FC), a highly contagious and severe disease in poultry with higher mortality and morbidity. Twenty-two P. multocida strains isolated from the FC outbreaks were subjected to phenotypic and genotypic characterization. The isolates were grouped into two distinct RAPD biotypes harboring a ra...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel evolutionary divergent RNA virus, is responsible for the present devastating COVID-19 pandemic. To explore the genomic signatures, we comprehensively analyzed 2,492 complete and/or near-complete genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 strains reported from across the globe to the GISAID d...

The emerging novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has created a global confusing pandemic health crisis that warrants an accurate and detailed characterization of the rapidly evolving viral genome for understanding its epidemiology, pathogenesis and containment. We explored 61,485 sequences of the Nucleocapsid (N) protein, a potent diagnostic and prophylac...

The avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) strains are the chief etiology of colibacillosis worldwide. The present study investigated the circulating phylotypes, existence of virulence genes (VGs), and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in 392 APEC isolates, obtained from 130 samples belonged to six farms using both phenotypic and PCR-based molecular...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the etiologic agent of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a public health emergency of international concerns declared by the World Health Organization (WHO). An immuno-informatics approach along with comparative genomics was applied to design a multi-epitope-...

Poultry originated Escherichia fergusonii (POEF), an emerging bacterial pathogen, causes a wide range of intestinal and extra-intestinal infections in the poultry industry which incurred significant economic losses worldwide. Chromosomal co-existence of antibiotics and metal resistance genes has recently been the focal point of POEF isolates beside...

The milk of lactating cows presents a complex ecosystem of interconnected microbial communities which can influence the pathophysiology of mastitis. We hypothesized possible dynamic shifts of microbiome compositions with the progress of different pathological states of mastitis (CM, Recurrent CM; RCM, Subclinical Mastitis; SCM) determined by its fa...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious disease of cloven-hoofed animals throughout the world. The endemicity of this disease in Bangladesh has been causing high economic loss and an impediment to the full potential surge of livestock industries. In Bangladesh, vaccination using imported or locally produced FMD vaccines is the existing...

In this study we investigated the circulating phylotypes, existence of virulence genes (VGs) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in 392 APEC isolates, obtained from 130 samples belonged to six farms using both phenotypic and PCR-based molecular approaches

In order to explore nonsynonymous mutations and deletions in the spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2, we comprehensively analyzed 35,750 complete S protein gene sequences from across six continents and five climate zones around the world, as documented in the GISAID database as of June 24th, 2020. Through a custom Python-based pipeline for analyzing mu...

Introduction Many emerging and reemerging pathogens have been identified as major public health threats in Bangladesh. Collection, transportation, and storage of infectious materials and management of generated waste from diagnosing those diseases require strict adherence to biosafety and biosecurity practices. Such activities in Bangladesh need su...

Foot‐and‐mouth disease virus (FMDV) serotype A exhibits a high degree of genetic and antigenic diversity that results in frequent vaccine failure due to serological mismatch between the vaccine and heterologous strains even from the same serotype. Currently, knowledge on the molecular basis of antigenic relationships among the FMDVs is limited, tho...

Bovine clinical mastitis (CM) is one of the most prevalent diseases caused by a wide range of resident microbes. The emergence of antimicrobial resistance in CM bacteria is well-known, however, the genomic resistance composition (the resistome) at the microbiome-level is not well characterized. In this study, we applied whole metagenome sequencing...

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious disease of cloven-hoofed animals throughout the world. The endemicity of this disease in Bangladesh has been causing high economic loss and an impediment to the full potential surge of livestock industries. In Bangladesh, vaccination using imported or locally produced FMD vaccines is the existing...

Background: The emergence of antimicrobial resistant pathogenic bacteria in bovine clinical mastitis (CM) is now more widely known, however the genomic resistance scen insights into the disease dynamics and treatment outcome. Therefore, characterization of microbiome and analyzing their genomic resistance potentials will help improve Methods: To de...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel evolutionarily divergent RNA virus etiological agent of COVID-19, is responsible for present devastating pandemic respiratory illness. To explore the genomic signatures, we comprehensively analyzed 2,492 complete and/or near-complete genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 strains reporte...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a public health emergency of international concern declared by the World Health Organization (WHO). An immuno-informatics approach along with comparative genomic was applied to design a multi-epitope-based peptid...

Co-exposure of metal and antibiotics in environment is a raising concern in the proliferation of antibiotic resistance where metal contamination functions as selective agent. In Bangladesh, pollution of arsenic (As) and disposal of antibiotics in the natural environments contribute to the spread of multidrug and metal resistance. This study was aim...

Arsenic (As) contamination of groundwater is one of the largest mass poisoning causing major health problems in Bangladesh. Arsenic contaminated aquifer may contain potential arsenotrophic bacteria which can transform highly toxic arsenite (III) to less toxic arsenate (V). Therefore, this study was aimed to cultivation-dependent investigation of di...

The bovine clinical mastitis (CM) milk is a large reservoir for diverse groups of resistomes, which play important roles in the pathogenesis of mastitis, but little is known about the concurrence of CM microbiome signature and its associated resistomes. Here we deciphered the total resistance (antibiotics and metals resistance, biofilm formation, q...

Objectives: Emergence of carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa is limiting current treatment options. Carbapenemases and their association with integrons can cause rapid dissemination of resistance traits. We report here the co-existence and chromosomal inheritance of all four classes of β-lactamase and the presence of a unique class 1 integ...

Foot‐and‐mouth disease virus (FMDV) is a highly evolutionary divergent pathogen causing great economic havoc in many countries. Among its seven existing serotypes, Asia1 is the least divergent with a single topotype both genetically and antigenically. It is reported sporadically in Indian subcontinent and was classified under lineage G‐VIII. In 201...

Background: Bovine mastitis is considered as one of the most economically important diseases of livestock, and diverse groups of microbiotas are associated with the disease. Understanding the microbial colonization and interaction during mastitis in cattle is necessary to elucidate the progression of pathogenesis and development of sustainable prev...

Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) has been a major threat to livestock worldwide, and is caused by FMD Virus (FMDV) existing as seven serotypes (A, O, C, Asia1 and SAT 1-3), each having variability into topotypes, genetic lineages, sublineages, and strains. Three serotypes are circulating in Indian subcontinent with the widespread distribution of seroty...

Milk microbiomes significantly influence the pathophysiology of bovine mastitis. To assess the association between microbiome diversity and bovine mastitis, we compared the microbiome of clinical mastitis (CM, n = 14) and healthy (H, n = 7) milk samples through deep whole metagenome sequencing (WMS). A total of 483.38 million reads generated from b...

The near-complete genome sequence of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) serotype A potential vaccine strain BAN/CH/Sa-304/2016 is reported here. Its genome revealed antigenic heterogeneity with the current Indian vaccine strain IND40/00, with four amino acid substitutions in antigenically critical sites of the VP1 protein.

Millions of people worldwide are at risk of arsenic poisoning from their drinking water. In Bangladesh the problem extends to rural drinking water wells, where non-biological solutions are not feasible. In serial enrichment cultures of water from various Bangladesh drinking water wells, we found transfer-persistent arsenite oxidation activity under...

The near-complete genome sequence of a foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), strain O/ME-SA/Ind2001BD2, isolated exclusively from Bangladesh, is reported here. Amino acid substitutions at critical antigenic sites of the capsid were identified compared to the surface proteins of existing vaccine strain O/India/R2/75 and contemporary FMDV serotype O i...