Artesunate has its enhancement on antibacterial activity of beta-lactams via increasing the antibiotic accumulation within methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

作者：Jiang Weiwei; Li Bin; Zheng Xinchuan; Liu Xin; Pan Xichun; Qing Rongxin; Cen Yanyan; Zheng Jiang^*; Zhou Hong

来源：Journal of Antibiotics, 2013, 66(6): 339-345.

DOI：10.1038/ja.2013.22

• antibiotic
• artesunate
• efflux pumps
• MRSA
• NorA

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has now emerged as a predominant and serious pathogen because of its resistance to a large group of antibiotics, leading to high morbidity and mortality. Therefore, to develop new agents against resistance is urgently required. Previously, artesunate (AS) was found to enhance the antibacterial effect of beta-lactams against MRSA. In this study, AS was first found to increase the accumulation of antibiotics (daunorubicin and oxacillin) within MRSA by laser confocal microscopy and liquid chromatography-tandem MS method, suggesting the increased antibiotics accumulation might be related to the enhancement of AS on antibiotics. Furthermore, AS was found not to destroy the cell structure of MRSA by transmission electron microscope. AS was found to inhibit gene expressions of important efflux pumps such as NorA, NorB and NorC, but not MepA, SepA and MdeA. In conclusion, our results showed that AS was capable of enhancing the antibacterial activity of beta-lactams via increasing antibiotic accumulations within MRSA through inhibiting gene expressions of efflux pumps such as NorA, NorB and NorC, but did not destroy the cell structure of MRSA. AS could be further investigated as a candidate drug for treatment of MRSA infection.

• 出版日期2013-6
• 单位中国人民解放军陆军军医大学