scholarly journals In Vitro Synergy of Pongamia pinnata Extract in Combination with Antibiotics for Inhibiting and Killing Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Antibiotics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Po-An Su ◽  
Shun-Lai Li ◽  
Hung-Jen Tang ◽  
Chi-Chung Chen ◽  
Ying-Chen Lu ◽  
...  

Aims: Currently, we face the serious problem of multiple drug-resistant pathogens. The development of new antimicrobial agents is very costly and time-consuming. Therefore, the use of medicinal plants as a source of alternative antibiotics or for enhancing antibiotic effectiveness is important. Methods: The antibacterial effects of aqueous extracts of the seed coat of Pongamia pinnata (Linn.) Pierre in combination with several antibiotics against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were tested by broth dilution, checkerboard, and time-kill methods. Results: For the combinations of P. pinnata with ampicillin, meropenem, cefazolin, cefotaxime, cefpirome, and cefuroxime, 70% to 100% were synergistic, with a fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) index of < 0.5. For the time-kill method with 0.5× minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of P. pinnata in combination with 8, 4, 2, and 1 µg mL−1 of the various antibiotics, almost all of the combinations showed synergistic effects, even with the lowest concentrations of P. pinnata, except for aztreonam. No antagonistic effect was observed for these combinations. Conclusions: Based on these findings, aqueous seed coat extracts of P. pinnata have good potential for the design of new antimicrobial agents.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3206
Author(s):  
Lorina I. Badger-Emeka ◽  
Promise Madu Emeka ◽  
Hairul Islam M. Ibrahim

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection is detrimental to hospitalized patients. With diminishing choices of antibiotics and the worry about resistance to colistin in synergistic combined therapy, there are suggestions for the use of herbal derivatives. This investigation evaluated the synergistic effects of Nigella sativa (NS) in combination with beta-lactam (β-lactam) antibiotics on extreme drug-resistant (XDR) MRSA isolates. NS concentrations of 10, 7.5, 5.0, 2.5, 1.0, and 0.1 µg/mL, alone and in combination with β-lactam antibiotics, were used to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility of MRSA isolates by the well diffusion method. Time–kill assays were performed using a spectrophotometer, with time–kill curves plotted and synergism ascertained by the fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC). Scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used to gain insight into the mechanism of action of treated groups. Isolates were inhibited by the NS concentrations, with differences in the zones of inhibition being statistically insignificant at p < 0.05. There were statistically significant differences in the time–kill assay for the MRSA isolates. In addition, NS combined with augmentin showed better killing than oxacillin and cefuroxime. The mechanism of action shown by the SEM and TEM results revealed cell wall disruption, which probably created interference that led to bacterial lysis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 2752
Author(s):  
Shu Wang ◽  
Ok-Hwa Kang ◽  
Dong-Yeul Kwon

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major nosocomial pathogen worldwide and has acquired multiple resistance to a wide range of antibiotics. Hence, there is a pressing need to explore novel strategies to overcome the increase in antimicrobial resistance. The present study aims to investigate the efficacy and mechanism of plant-derived antimicrobials, trans-cinnamaldehyde (TCA) in decreasing MRSA’s resistance to eight conventional antibiotics. A checkerboard dilution test and time–kill curve assay are used to determine the synergistic effects of TCA combined with the antibiotics. The results indicated that TCA increased the antibacterial activity of the antibiotics by 2-16-fold. To study the mechanism of the synergism, we analyzed the mecA transcription gene and the penicillin-binding protein 2a level of MRSA treated with TCA by quantitative RT-PCR or Western blot assay. The gene transcription and the protein level were significantly inhibited. Additionally, it was verified that TCA can significantly inhibit the biofilm, which is highly resistant to antibiotics. The expression of the biofilm regulatory gene hld of MRSA after TCA treatment was also significantly downregulated. These findings suggest that TCA maybe is an exceptionally potent modulator of antibiotics.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Shumyila Nasir ◽  
Muhammad Sufyan Vohra ◽  
Danish Gul ◽  
Umm E Swaiba ◽  
Maira Aleem ◽  
...  

The emergence of multidrug-resistant pathogens such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), the chief etiological agent for a range of refractory infections, has rendered all β-lactams ineffective against it. The treatment process is further complicated with the development of resistance to glycopeptides, primary antibiotics for treatment of MRSA. Antibiotic combination therapy with existing antimicrobial agents may provide an immediate treatment option. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 18 different commercially available antibiotics were determined along with their 90 possible pairwise combinations and 64 triple combinations to filter out 5 best combinations. Time-Kill kinetics of these combinations were then analyzed to find collateral bactericidal combinations which were then tested on other randomly selected MRSA isolates. Among the top 5 combinations including levofloxacin-ceftazidime; amoxicillin/clavulanic acid-tobramycin; amoxicillin/clavulanic acid-cephradine; amoxicillin/clavulanic acid-ofloxacin; and piperacillin/tazobactam-tobramycin, three combinations were found to be collaterally effective. Levofloxacin-ceftazidime acted synergistically in 80% of the tested clinical MRSA isolates. First-line β-lactams of lower generations can be used effectively against MRSA infection when used in combination. Antibiotics other than glycopeptides may still work in combination.


2006 ◽  
Vol 50 (11) ◽  
pp. 3622-3630 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Périchon ◽  
Patrice Courvalin

ABSTRACT Vancomycin resistance of Staphylococcus aureus NY-VRSA and VRSA-5 is due to acquisition of a vanA operon located in a Tn1546-like element. The vanA gene cluster of NY-VRSA contained one copy of insertion sequences IS1251 and IS1216V relative to that of VRSA-5. As evidenced by the nature of the late peptidoglycan precursors and by quantification of d,d-peptidase activities, the vancomycin resistance genes were efficiently expressed in both strains. Study of the stability and inducibility of glycopeptide resistance suggested that low-level glycopeptide resistance of NY-VRSA was most probably due to plasmid instability combined with a long delay for resistance induction. The activity of combinations of vancomycin or teicoplanin with oxacillin against the four VanA-type S. aureus strains already reported was tested by single and double disk diffusion, E-test on agar alone or supplemented with antibiotics, the checkerboard technique, and by determining time-kill curves. A strong synergism against the four clinical isolates, with fractional inhibitory concentration indexes from 0.008 to 0.024, was reproducibly observed between the two antibiotics by all methods. These observations indicate that cell wall inhibitors of the β-lactam and glycopeptide classes exert strong and mutual antagonistic effects on resistance to each other against VanA-type methicillin-resistant S. aureus.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-133
Author(s):  
Asih Rahayu ◽  
Chylen Setiyo Rini ◽  
Yos Adi Prakoso ◽  
Bagus Uda Palgunadi ◽  
Muhammad Aris Munandar

Background and Aim: The massive utilization of antibiotics has increased resistant genes produced by bacteria. Many bacteria, including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), have become resistant against ampicillin (AMP). The combination of an herbal extract with AMP is expected to generate synergistic effects and may restore the susceptibility of MRSA against AMP. This study aimed to analyze the potency of Sauropus androgynous extract (SAE) as a single extract and combination with AMP against MRSA. Materials and Methods: Sauropus androgynous was extracted using 60% ethanol. SAE biochemical compounds were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. SAE, AMP, and SAE+AMP were tested against MRSA isolates to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration and fractional inhibitory concentration. The inhibition of penicillin-binding proteins 2a (PBP2a) was analyzed using a latex agglutination test. Further, the disruptive membrane effects of SAE, AMP, and SAE+AMP were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope. The analysis of data was conducted using SPSS version 16 with p=0.01. Results: SAE contained bioactive compounds such as phenolics and flavonoids. Further, 2 mg/mL of SAE could be used as the potential concentration against MRSA isolates in vitro. In addition, the utilization of SAE+AMP generated synergistic effects, restored the susceptibility of isolates against AMP, decreased the synthesis of PBP2a by the MRSA, and induced ultrastructural changes in the bacterial membrane. Conclusion: This study indicated that the utilization of SAE potentially inhibits the growth of MRSA through decreasing of PBP2a expression, disruption of the MRSA membrane, while the combination of SAE+AMP showed synergistic effects against MRSA.


2014 ◽  
Vol 60 (10) ◽  
pp. 629-638 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dae-Sung Lee ◽  
Sung-Hwan Eom ◽  
Young-Mog Kim ◽  
Hye Seon Kim ◽  
Mi-Jin Yim ◽  
...  

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is spreading worldwide, emphasizing the need to search for new antibiotics. The anti-MRSA activities of gallic acid-grafted-chitosans (GA-g-chitosans) were investigated against 2 MRSA standards and 10 MRSA clinical isolates by determining the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). GA-g-chitosan (I), which has the highest gallic acid content, exhibited the strongest anti-MRSA activities, with MICs of 32–64 μg/mL. A time-kill investigation revealed that GA-g-chitosan (I) exhibited a bactericidal effect at twice the MIC, also demonstrating good thermal and pH stability. Investigation of cell envelope integrity showed the release of intracellular components with an increasing absorbance value at 260 nm, indicating cell envelope damage caused by the GA-g-chitosan (I), which was further confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. When GA-g-chitosans were combined with β-lactams, including ampicillin and penicillin, synergistic effects were observed on the 2 standard MRSA strains and on the 10 clinical isolates, with fractional inhibitory indices ranging from 0.125 to 0.625. In the time-kill dynamic confirmation test, synergistic bactericidal effects were observed for the combinations of GA-g-chitosans with β-lactams, and over 4.0 log CFU/mL reductions were observed after 24 h when combination treatment was used. These results may prove GA-g-chitosans to be a potent agent when combined with ampicillin and penicillin for the elimination of MRSA.


2017 ◽  
Vol 242 (7) ◽  
pp. 731-743 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiu-Fai Kuok ◽  
Sai-On Hoi ◽  
Chi-Fai Hoi ◽  
Chi-Hong Chan ◽  
Io-Hong Fong ◽  
...  

Antibiotic resistance has become a serious global concern, and the discovery of antimicrobial herbal constituents may provide valuable solutions to overcome the problem. In this study, the effects of therapies combining antibiotics and four medicinal herbs on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were investigated. Specifically, the synergistic effects of Magnolia officinalis, Verbena officinalis, Momordica charantia, and Daphne genkwa in combination with oxacillin or gentamicin against methicillin-resistant (ATCC43300) and methicillin-susceptible (ATCC25923) S. aureus were examined. In vitro susceptibility and synergistic testing were performed to measure the minimum inhibitory concentration and fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) index of the antibiotics and medicinal herbs against MRSA and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus. To identify the active constituents in producing these synergistic effects, in silico molecular docking was used to investigate the binding affinities of 139 constituents of the four herbs to the two common MRSA inhibitory targets, penicillin binding proteins 2a (PBP2a) and 4 (PBP4). The physicochemical and absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion properties and drug safety profiles of these compounds were also analyzed. D. genkwa extract potentiated the antibacterial effects of oxacillin against MRSA, as indicated by an FIC index value of 0.375. M. officinalis and V. officinalis produced partial synergistic effects when combined with oxacillin, whereas M. charantia was found to have no beneficial effects in inhibiting MRSA. Overall, tiliroside, pinoresinol, magnatriol B, and momorcharaside B were predicted to be PBP2a or PBP4 inhibitors with good drug-like properties. This study identifies compounds that deserve further investigation with the aim of developing therapeutic agents to modulate the effect of antibiotics on MRSA. Impact statement Antibiotic resistant is a well-known threat to global health and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most significant ones. These resistant bacteria kill thousands of people every year and therefore a new effective antimicrobial treatment is necessary. This study identified the herbs and their associated bioactive ingredients that can potential the effects of current antibiotics. These herbs have long history of human usage in China and have well-defined monograph in the Chinese Pharmacopeia. These indicate their relatively high clinical safety and may have a quicker drug development process than that of a new novel antibiotic. Based on the results of this study, the authors will perform further in vitro and animal studies, aiming to accumulate significant data for the application of clinical trial.


2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gulseren Aktas

Background: Multi-drug resistant methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains that have been isolated frequently worldwide have difficulties in the treatment and therefore alternative choices for the treatment of the infections are required. The aim of the study was to evaluate the interaction of various antimicrobials in combination with vancomycin against MRSA. Methods: Twenty five clinical MRSA strains isolated in 2016 were included in the study. The interaction between vancomycin and new generation/conventional antimicrobials against MRSA strains was analyzed by E-test. Results: All of the strains tested was found to be susceptible to vancomycin, telavancin, dalbavancin, ceptobiprole, daptomycin, linezolid, quinupristin-dalfopristin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, rifampicin and tigecycline. The susceptibility rates of the isolates were found to be high, with the lowest rate (48%) against azithromycin. According to the fractional inhibitory concentration index results, synergistic interaction with vancomycin was determined with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, azithromycin, linezolid, minocycline, dalbavancin, clindamycin in five, three, two, two, one, one and one strain(s), respectively. Additionally, all combinations studied showed additive interaction at high rates. Conclusions: The results of the study indicate that the use of vancomycin in combination with conventional and new generation antibiotics is promising. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.1.2887 How to cite this:Aktas G. Efficacy of vancomycin in combination with various antimicrobial agents against clinical methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains. Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(1):151-156. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.1.2887 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


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