Euphorbia tirucalli are reported to possess antibacterial activity against various microorganisms. This in vitro study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial properties of Euphorbia tirucalli stems extracts (methanol, ethanol and aqueous extracts) against dental caries-related bacteria, i.e. Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) and Streptococcus sobrinus (S. sobrinus). The antibacterial properties were determined using agar-well diffusion method at different extract concentrations (10, 20 and 30 mg/ml). Commercially available amoxicillin (10 µg) was used as positive control while the appropriate solvent served as negative control. The methanolic and ethanolic extracts of Euphorbia tirucalli stem were found to be effective against S. mutans and S. sobrinus. However, the aqueous extract of Euphorbia tirucalli stem showed no activity against both bacterial strains. The differences in the antibacterial properties in different extracts of Euphorbia tirucalli may be due to the differences in phytochemical constituents.

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a gene amplification technique whereby the amplification products are commonly visualized as turbidity by naked eye in the presence of magnesium pyrophosphate precipitation. An appropriate intercalating dye is important as it could increase the sensitivity and reduce the false positive and false negative results for the detection. The study aimed to compare the performance of three different intercalating dyes; SYBR Green I, SYBR Safe and calcein-based dyes in HPV-16 LAMP assay by naked-eye visualization, gel electrophoresis and real-time monitoring. The LAMP assay was carried out using a Loopamp DNA amplification kit in 25 μl volumes. The reaction mixture was incubated at 60�C for 60 mins and terminated at 80�C for 5 mins in a real-time turbidimeter. For naked eye detection, SYBR Green I and SYBR Safe were diluted at 1:10 of DMSO and was added to the solution after the reaction was completed while calcein was added before the amplification process. The sensitivity of the LAMP assay was investigated ranging from 101 copies/μl to 108 copies/μl of the HPV 16 DNA template. All three dyes exhibited similar results in term of sensitivity with the detection limit of 103 copies/μl. Addition of calcein dye showed decrease in detection time by 10 mins by real-time turbidimeter. The performance all three dyes for naked-eye detection are comparable and can be used for endpoint screening applications in HPV 16 assay, whereas in real-time evaluation, addition of calcein delay the detection time by 10 mins.