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Combinations of β-lactam or aminoglycoside antibiotics with plectasin are synergistic against methicillin-sensitive and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Hu, Y; Liu, A; Vaudrey, J; Vaiciunaite, B; Moigboi, C; McTavish, SM; Kearns, A; Coates, A (2015) Combinations of β-lactam or aminoglycoside antibiotics with plectasin are synergistic against methicillin-sensitive and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. PLoS One, 10 (2). ISSN 1932-6203 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0117664
SGUL Authors: Coates, Anthony Robert Milnes Hu, Yanmin

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Abstract

Bacterial infections remain the leading killer worldwide which is worsened by the continuous emergence of antibiotic resistance. In particular, methicillin-sensitive (MSSA) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are prevalent and the latter can be difficult to treat. The traditional strategy of novel therapeutic drug development inevitably leads to emergence of resistant strains, rendering the new drugs ineffective. Therefore, rejuvenating the therapeutic potentials of existing antibiotics offers an attractive novel strategy. Plectasin, a defensin antimicrobial peptide, potentiates the activities of other antibiotics such as β-lactams, aminoglycosides and glycopeptides against MSSA and MRSA. We performed in vitro and in vivo investigations to test against genetically diverse clinical isolates of MSSA (n = 101) and MRSA (n = 115). Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were determined by the broth microdilution method. The effects of combining plectasin with β-lactams, aminoglycosides and glycopeptides were examined using the chequerboard method and time kill curves. A murine neutropenic thigh model and a murine peritoneal infection model were used to test the effect of combination in vivo. Determined by factional inhibitory concentration index (FICI), plectasin in combination with aminoglycosides (gentamicin, neomycin or amikacin) displayed synergistic effects in 76-78% of MSSA and MRSA. A similar synergistic response was observed when plectasin was combined with β-lactams (penicillin, amoxicillin or flucloxacillin) in 87-89% of MSSA and MRSA. Interestingly, no such interaction was observed when plectasin was paired with vancomycin. Time kill analysis also demonstrated significant synergistic activities when plectasin was combined with amoxicillin, gentamicin or neomycin. In the murine models, plectasin at doses as low as 8 mg/kg augmented the activities of amoxicillin and gentamicin in successful treatment of MSSA and MRSA infections. We demonstrated that plectasin strongly rejuvenates the therapeutic potencies of existing antibiotics in vitro and in vivo. This is a novel strategy that can have major clinical implications in our fight against bacterial infections.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: © 2015 Hu et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Keywords: General Science & Technology, MD Multidisciplinary
SGUL Research Institute / Research Centre: Academic Structure > Infection and Immunity Research Institute (INII)
Journal or Publication Title: PLoS One
Article Number: e0117664
ISSN: 1932-6203
Language: eng
Dates:
DateEvent
18 February 2015Published
PubMed ID: 25692771
Web of Science ID: WOS:000350061500068
Go to PubMed abstract
URI: https://openaccess.sgul.ac.uk/id/eprint/107380
Publisher's version: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0117664

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