scholarly journals Synergistic Activity of Berberine with Azithromycin against Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Isolated from Patients with Cystic Fibrosis of Lung In Vitro and In Vivo

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 1657-1669 ◽  
Author(s):  
YongTao Li ◽  
JianRong Huang ◽  
LanJuan Li ◽  
LinSheng Liu

Background/Aims: Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) is one of the major opportunistic pathogens which can cause chronic lung infection of cystic fibrosis (CF). The formation of PA biofilm promotes CF development and restricts the antimicrobial efficacies of current antibiotics. Methods: The antimicrobial effects of azithromycin (AZM) and berberine (BER) alone and in combination were evaluated using microdilution method, checkerboard assay, time-kill test, qRT-PCR analysis and absorption method. The treatments of AZM and/or BER were further evaluated in an animal lung infection model via observing survival rate, bacterial burden and histopathology of lung, the levels of pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokines. Results: AZM-BER were demonstrated to be synergistic against ten clinical PA isolates as well as the standard reference PA ATCC27853, in which PA03 was the most susceptible isolate to AZM-BER with FICI of 0.13 and chosen for subsequent experiments. The synergism of AZM-BER was further confirmed against PA03 in time-kill test and scanning electron microscope (SEM) at their concentrations showing synergism. In PA03, we found that AZM-BER could significantly attenuate productions of a series of virulence factors including alginate, LasA protease, LasB protease, pyoverdin, pyocyanin, chitinase as well as extracellular DNA, and remarkably inhibit the levels of quorum sensing (QS) molecules and the expressions of lasI, lasR, rhlI, rhlR at 1/2×MIC, 1×MIC and 2×MIC. In the infection model, the mice survival were increased markedly, the inflammations of infected lungs were improved greatly along with reduced IL-6, IL-8 and ascended IL-10 at 0.8 mg/kg of AZM combined with 3.2 mg/kg of BER. Conclusion: BER might be a promising synergist to enhance the antimicrobial activity of AZM in vitro and in vivo.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingquan Chen ◽  
Marleini Ilanga ◽  
Sabona B Simbassa ◽  
Bhagath Chirra ◽  
Kush N Shah ◽  
...  

Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is a common fatal genetic disease caused by mutations happened to cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. Lungs of CF patients are often colonized or infected with microorganisms. Drug resistant bacterial infection has been problematic in cystic fibrosis patient. The chronic bacterial infections and concomitant airway inflammation could damage the lung and lead to respiratory failure. Several clinical trials have demonstrated that high-dose ibuprofen reduces the rate of pulmonary function decline in CF patients. This beneficial effect has been attributed to the anti-inflammatory properties of ibuprofen. Previously, we have confirmed that high-dose ibuprofen demonstrated antimicrobial activity against P. aeruginosa in in vitro and in vivo. However, no study has examined the antimicrobial effect of combining ibuprofen with standard-of-care (SoC) antimicrobials. Here, we evaluated possible synergistic activity of combinations of common nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), namely, aspirin, naproxen, and ibuprofen, with commonly used antibiotics for CF patients. The drug combinations were screened against different CF clinical isolates. Drugs that demonstrated efficacy in the presence of ibuprofen were further verified synergistic effects between these antimicrobials and NSAIDs. Finally, the survival analysis of an P. aeruginosa murine infection model was used to demonstrate the efficacy of synergistic combination. Our results suggest that combinations of ibuprofen with commonly used antibiotics demonstrate synergistic antimicrobial activity against drug resistant, clinical bacterial strains in in vitro. The efficacy of combination ceftazidime and ibuprofen was demonstrated in in vivo.


Author(s):  
Maxwell J. LASKO ◽  
Kamilia ABDELRAOUF ◽  
David P. NICOLAU

Abstract (248/250) Introduction: WCK 4282 (cefepime 2g/tazobactam 2g) maximizes systemic exposure of tazobactam and restores cefepime activity against various extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)- and cephalosporinase-producing strains in vitro. We describe clinical WCK 4282 exposure efficacy against various serine β-lactamase-producing Enterobacterales and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a murine pneumonia model. Clinical cefepime-resistant isolates (17 Enterobacterales and 2 P. aeruginosa) were utilized. Isolates expressed ESBLs, cephalosporinases, and/or serine carbapenemases (KPC, OXA-48-like). WCK 4282 MICs were 4-32 μg/mL. For in vivo experiments, lungs of neutropenic mice were inoculated using standard inoculum (107 log10 CFU/mL). Serine-carbapenemase-producing isolates were also assessed using a low inoculum (1:5 dilution). Treatment mice received HSR of cefepime, meropenem (control for serine carbapenemase expression with low inoculum experiments), or WCK 4282 human-simulated regimens. Efficacy was assessed as change in log10 CFU/lung at 24h compared with 0h controls. Results: At standard inoculum, mean 0h bacterial burden was 6.65±0.23 log10 CFU/lung and increased at 24h by 2.48 ± 0.60 log10 CFU/lung among untreated controls. Lower inoculums initial bacterial burdens ranged from 5.81±0.12-6.39±0.13 log10 CFU/lung. At standard and/or low inoculums, cefepime and meropenem provided minimal activity. WCK 4282 produced >1-log10 reduction against 9/9 ESBL/cephalosporinase-producing strains. WCK 4282 provided variable activity among mice infected with standard or lower inoculums of OXA-48-like-producers. WCK 4282 exposures provided 0.53±1.07 log10 CFU/lung growth against KPC-producers at standard versus bacteriostasis (-0.15±0.54 change in log10 CFU/lung) at low inoculum. Conclusion: WCK 4282 produced potent in vivo activity against ESBL- and cephalosporinase-producing Enterobacterales and P. aeruginosa, and potential activity against OXA-48-like-producing Enterobacterales in a neutropenic pneumonia model.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niamh E. Harrington ◽  
Esther Sweeney ◽  
Freya Harrison

AbstractPseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm infections in the cystic fibrosis (CF) lung are highly resistant to current antimicrobial treatments and are associated with increased mortality rates. The existing models for such infections are not able to reliably mimic the clinical biofilms observed. We aimed to further optimise an ex vivo pig lung (EVPL) model for P. aeruginosa CF lung infection that can be used to increase understanding of chronic CF biofilm infection. The EVPL model will facilitate discovery of novel infection prevention methods and treatments, and enhanced exploration of biofilm architecture. We investigated purine metabolism and biofilm formation in the model using transposon insertion mutants in P. aeruginosa PA14 for key genes: purD, gacA and pelA. Our results demonstrate that EVPL recapitulates a key aspect of in vivo P. aeruginosa infection metabolism, and that the pathogen forms a biofilm with a clinically realistic structure not seen in other in vitro studies. Two pathways known to be required for in vivo biofilm infection - the Gac regulatory pathway and production of the Pel exopolysaccharide - are essential to the formation of this mature, structured biofilm on EVPL tissue. We propose the high-throughput EVPL model as a validated biofilm platform to bridge the gap between in vitro and CF lung infection.


2019 ◽  
Vol 74 (11) ◽  
pp. 3211-3216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan Göttig ◽  
Denia Frank ◽  
Eleonora Mungo ◽  
Anika Nolte ◽  
Michael Hogardt ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives The β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combination ceftazidime/avibactam is active against KPC-producing Enterobacterales. Herein, we present molecular and phenotypic characterization of ceftazidime/avibactam resistance in KPC-3-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae that emerged in vivo and in vitro. Methods Sequence analysis of blaKPC-3 was performed from clinical and in vitro-generated ceftazidime/avibactam-resistant K. pneumoniae isolates. Time–kill kinetics and the Galleria mellonella infection model were applied to evaluate the activity of ceftazidime/avibactam and imipenem alone and in combination. Results The ceftazidime/avibactam-resistant clinical K. pneumoniae isolate revealed the amino acid change D179Y in KPC-3. Sixteen novel mutational changes in KPC-3 among in vitro-selected ceftazidime/avibactam-resistant isolates were described. Time–kill kinetics showed the emergence of a resistant subpopulation under selection pressure with either imipenem or ceftazidime/avibactam. However, combined selection pressure with imipenem plus ceftazidime/avibactam prevented the development of resistance and resulted in bactericidal activity. Concordantly, the G. mellonella infection model revealed that monotherapy with ceftazidime/avibactam is prone to select for resistance in vivo and that combination therapy with imipenem results in significantly better survival. Conclusions Ceftazidime/avibactam is a valuable antibiotic against MDR and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales. Based on time–kill kinetics as well as an in vivo infection model we postulate a combination therapy of ceftazidime/avibactam and imipenem as a strategy to prevent the development of ceftazidime/avibactam resistance in KPC-producing Enterobacterales in vivo.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Licia Totani ◽  
Concetta Amore ◽  
Antonio Piccoli ◽  
Giuseppe Dell’Elba ◽  
Angelo Di Santo ◽  
...  

Neutrophilic inflammation is a key determinant of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. Neutrophil-derived free DNA, released in the form of extracellular traps (NETs), significantly correlates with impaired lung function in patients with CF, underlying their pathogenetic role in CF lung disease. Thus, specific approaches to control NETosis of neutrophils migrated into the lungs may be clinically relevant in CF. We investigated the efficacy of phosphodiesterase (PDE) type-4 inhibitors, in vitro, on NET release by neutrophils from healthy volunteers and individuals with CF, and in vivo, on NET accumulation and lung inflammation in mice infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. PDE4 blockade curbed endotoxin-induced NET production and preserved cellular integrity and apoptosis in neutrophils, from healthy subjects and patients with CF, challenged with endotoxin, in vitro. The pharmacological effects of PDE4 inhibitors were significantly more evident on CF neutrophils. In a mouse model of Pseudomonas aeruginosa chronic infection, aerosol treatment with roflumilast, a selective PDE4 inhibitor, gave a significant reduction in free DNA in the BALF. This was accompanied by reduced citrullination of histone H3 in neutrophils migrated into the airways. Roflumilast-treated mice showed a significant improvement in weight recovery. Our study provides the first evidence that PDE4 blockade controls NETosis in vitro and in vivo, in CF-relevant models. Since selective PDE4 inhibitors have been recently approved for the treatment of COPD and psoriasis, our present results encourage clinical trials to test the efficacy of this class of drugs in CF.


mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M. Flynn ◽  
Lydia C. Cameron ◽  
Talia D. Wiggen ◽  
Jordan M. Dunitz ◽  
William R. Harcombe ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT A critical limitation in the management of chronic polymicrobial infections is the lack of correlation between antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) and patient responses to therapy. Underlying this disconnect is our inability to accurately recapitulate the in vivo environment and complex polymicrobial communities in vitro. However, emerging evidence suggests that, if modeled and tested accurately, interspecies relationships can be exploited by conventional antibiotics predicted to be ineffective by standard AST. As an example, under conditions where Pseudomonas aeruginosa relies on cocolonizing organisms for nutrients (i.e., cross-feeding), multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa may be indirectly targeted by inhibiting the growth of its metabolic partners. While this has been shown in vitro using synthetic bacterial communities, the efficacy of a “weakest-link” approach to controlling host-associated polymicrobial infections has not yet been demonstrated. To test whether cross-feeding inhibition can be leveraged in clinically relevant contexts, we collected sputa from cystic fibrosis (CF) subjects and used enrichment culturing to isolate both P. aeruginosa and anaerobic bacteria from each sample. Predictably, both subpopulations showed various antibiotic susceptibilities when grown independently. However, when P. aeruginosa was cultured and treated under cooperative conditions in which it was dependent on anaerobic bacteria for nutrients, the growth of both the pathogen and the anaerobe was constrained despite their intrinsic antibiotic resistance profiles. These data demonstrate that the control of complex polymicrobial infections may be achieved by exploiting obligate or facultative interspecies relationships. Toward this end, in vitro susceptibility testing should evolve to more accurately reflect in vivo growth environments and microbial interactions found within them. IMPORTANCE Antibiotic efficacy achieved in vitro correlates poorly with clinical outcomes after treatment of chronic polymicrobial diseases; if a pathogen demonstrates susceptibility to a given antibiotic in the lab, that compound is often ineffective when administered clinically. Conversely, if a pathogen is resistant in vitro, patient treatment with that same compound can elicit a positive response. This discordance suggests that the in vivo growth environment impacts pathogen antibiotic susceptibility. Indeed, here we demonstrate that interspecies relationships among microbiotas in the sputa of cystic fibrosis patients can be targeted to indirectly inhibit the growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The therapeutic implication is that control of chronic lung infections may be achieved by exploiting obligate or facultative relationships among airway bacterial community members. This strategy is particularly relevant for pathogens harboring intrinsic multidrug resistance and is broadly applicable to chronic polymicrobial airway, wound, and intra-abdominal infections.


2010 ◽  
Vol 54 (8) ◽  
pp. 3212-3218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moshe Giladi ◽  
Yaara Porat ◽  
Alexandra Blatt ◽  
Esther Shmueli ◽  
Yoram Wasserman ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT High-frequency, low-intensity electric fields generated by insulated electrodes have previously been shown to inhibit bacterial growth in vitro. In the present study, we tested the effect of these antimicrobial fields (AMFields) on the development of lung infection caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in mice. We demonstrate that AMFields (10 MHz) significantly inhibit bacterial growth in vivo, both as a stand-alone treatment and in combination with ceftazidime. In addition, we show that peripheral (skin) heating of about 2°C can contribute to bacterial growth inhibition in the lungs of mice. We suggest that the combination of alternating electric fields, together with the heat produced during their application, may serve as a novel antibacterial treatment modality.


Antibiotics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 885
Author(s):  
Soraya Herrera-Espejo ◽  
Tania Cebrero-Cangueiro ◽  
Gema Labrador-Herrera ◽  
Jerónimo Pachón ◽  
María Eugenia Pachón-Ibáñez ◽  
...  

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a public health problem causing both community and hospital-acquired infections, and thus the development of new therapies for these infections is critical. The objective of this study was to analyze in vitro the activity of pentamidine as adjuvant in combinations to antibiotics against seven clinical P. aeruginosa strains. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) was determined following standard protocols, and the results were interpreted according to the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) breakpoints; however, the gentamicin activity was interpreted according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) recommendations. The bactericidal in vitro activity was studied at 1×MIC concentrations by time–kill curves, and also performed in three selected strains at 1/2×MIC of pentamidine. All studies were performed in triplicate. The pentamidine MIC range was 400–1600 μg/mL. Four of the strains were MDR, and the other three were resistant to two antibiotic families. The combinations of pentamidine at 1×MIC showed synergistic activity against all the tested strains, except for pentamidine plus colistin. Pentamidine plus imipenem and meropenem were the combinations that showed synergistic activity against the most strains. At 1/2×MIC, pentamidine plus antibiotics were synergistic with all three analyzed strains. In summary, pentamidine in combination with antibiotics showed in vitro synergy against multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa clinical strains, which suggests its possible use as adjuvant to antibiotics for the therapy of infections from MDR P. aeruginosa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Su Mon Aye ◽  
Irene Galani ◽  
Heidi Yu ◽  
Jiping Wang ◽  
Ke Chen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Resistance to polymyxin antibiotics is increasing. Without new antibiotic classes, combination therapy is often required. We systematically investigated bacterial killing with polymyxin-based combinations against multidrug-resistant (including polymyxin-resistant), carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae. Monotherapies and double- and triple-combination therapies were compared to identify the most efficacious treatment using static time-kill studies (24 h, six isolates), an in vitro pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic model (IVM; 48 h, two isolates), and the mouse thigh infection model (24 h, six isolates). In static time-kill studies, all monotherapies (polymyxin B, rifampin, amikacin, meropenem, or minocycline) were ineffective. Initial bacterial killing was enhanced with various polymyxin B-containing double combinations; however, substantial regrowth occurred in most cases by 24 h. Most polymyxin B-containing triple combinations provided greater and more sustained killing than double combinations. Standard dosage regimens of polymyxin B (2.5 mg/kg of body weight/day), rifampin (600 mg every 12 h), and amikacin (7.5 mg/kg every 12 h) were simulated in the IVM. Against isolate ATH 16, no viable bacteria were detected across 5 to 25 h with triple therapy, with regrowth to ∼2-log10 CFU/ml occurring at 48 h. Against isolate BD 32, rapid initial killing of ∼3.5-log10 CFU/ml at 5 h was followed by a slow decline to ∼2-log10 CFU/ml at 48 h. In infected mice, polymyxin B monotherapy (60 mg/kg/day) generally was ineffective. With triple therapy (polymyxin B at 60 mg/kg/day, rifampin at 120 mg/kg/day, and amikacin at 300 mg/kg/day), at 24 h there was an ∼1.7-log10 CFU/thigh reduction compared to the starting inoculum for all six isolates. Our results demonstrate that the polymyxin B-rifampin-amikacin combination significantly enhanced in vitro and in vivo bacterial killing, providing important information for the optimization of polymyxin-based combinations in patients.


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