A preliminary study on the antimicrobial activity of sting secretion and gastral glands of the acrobat ant Crematogaster scutellaris.

The sting secretion of the common acrobat ant Crematogaster scutellaris (Olivier) (Hymenoptera Formicidae) is a mixture of compounds, produced by the venom and the Dufour’s gastral glands, known to act as a chemical contact poison applied to the enemy’s body. Here we report a preliminary study where the sting secretion and the single dissected gastral glands from worker ants were tested for their antimicrobial activity. By the agar diffusion method, we demonstrated that sting secretion and both ve-nom and Doufur’s glands have a strong growth inhibition activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and entomo-pathogenic fungi. Moreover, we found that the inhibitory activity of sting secretion on Bacillus subtilis lasts in time for at least 24 hours from emission, with an increase after the first two hours.