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The present study entails the usefulness of thermophilic amidase-producing bacterium in the biotransformation of benzamide to benzohydroxamic acid (BHA). A bacterium Bacillus smithii IIIMB2907 was isolated from a soil sample collected from hot springs of Manikaran, Himachal Pradesh, India. The whole cells of the bacterium displayed versatile substrate specificity by exhibiting significant activity with a diverse range of amides. In addition, amidase from thermophilic bacterium was induced by adding Ɛ-caprolactam in the mineral base media. The optimum temperature and pH of acyltransferase activity of amidase enzyme were found to be 50 °C and 7.0, respectively. Interestingly, half-life (t1/2) of this enzyme was 17.37 h at 50 °C. Bench-scale production and purification of BHA was carried out at optimized conditions which resulted in the recovery of 64% BHA with a purity of 96%. Owing to this, the reported process in the present study can be considered of immense industrial significance for the production of BHA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This is first ethnomedicinal survey conducted in the Kangra valley. • Study includes systematic documentation using quantitative indices. • A total of 108 plants belonging to 51 families and 95 genera were reported. • Various ailments treated and route of administration were reported. The importance of medicinal plants in traditional health care practices has long been recognized as a source of biodiversity conservation and research. However, many remote areas of Himachal Pradesh lack information upon the usage of plants for medicinal purposes. The current study was conducted in Kangra Valley (district Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India) from March 2020 to August 2021 for the documentation of ethnomedicinal plants. Information on the ethnomedicinal plants was collected through extensive field visits using a pretested questionnaire, interviews and group discussions with the selected informants. Data collected from the study site were analysed using three different quantitative indices, viz., use-value, informant consensus factor (ICF) and fidelity level (Fl), (%) to check the importance and homogeneity of traditional ethnomedicinal knowledge among the informants of the study site. A total of 116 informants were selected using the snowball sampling technique. The rural inhabitants of the study area reported a total of 108 plants belonging to 51 families and 95 genera. A maximum number of plant species was reported from the Fabaceae (9) family, followed by Rosaceae (6), Moraceae (5) and Euphorbiaceae (5). The plant part that was most frequently used for the preparation of traditional remedies includes leaves (31%), followed by fruits (13%), whole plants (12%), bark (11%), roots (10%) and flowers (8%). Most of the plant species were used for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders (73), followed by dermatological (55) and respiratory disorders (38). The informants reported that the younger generation was not very interested in traditional knowledge due to cultural changes and the acceptance of Western culture. As a result, documenting traditional knowledge and ethnomedicinal plants from various parts of the world is critical. It not only helps in the documentation but also helps in the conservation and protection of endemic and endangered medicinal plants globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]