Agar disk diffusion susceptibility characteristics of azlocillin, carbenicillin, mezlocillin, piperacillin, and ticarcillin. (25/301)

The agar disk diffusion susceptibility of Enterobacteriaceae to mezlocillin and piperacillin was correlated with agar minimal inhibitory concentrations and compared with the susceptibility to carbenicillin. The agar disk susceptibility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to azlocillin, mezlocillin, and piperacillin was correlated with agar minimal inhibitory concentrations and compared with the susceptibility to carbenicillin and ticarcillin. Criteria are offered for the zones of inhibition to provide information about resistant and susceptible isolates that correlate with known serum levels.  (+info)

Comparative in vitro activity and clinical pharmacology of ticarcillin and carbenicillin. (26/301)

The in vitro activity and human pharmacology of ticarcillin, a semisynthetic penicillin more active than carbenicillin against Pseudomonas, were compared. There has been no increase in resistance to ticarcillin of Pseudomonas strains over the past 5 years, but resistance of indole-positive Proteus and Serratia strains has been documented. After intramuscular (i.m.) injection of 1 g of ticarcillin, mean peak levels occurred at 1 h (26.9 mug/ml) with a decline over 6 h (6.8 mug/ml). Serum half-life was 84 min. Dilution of ticarcillin lidocaine reduced pain on i.m. injection but did not alter serum levels. Blood levels after 1 g i.m. are adequate to treat infections produced by Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, and some Enterobacter, but not Pseudomonas. After rapid intravenous infusion of 3 and 5 g, mean peak serum levels of ticarcillin were slightly lower for 1 h than those achieved with carbenicillin. Probenecid administered before infusion produced increases in blood levels, half-lives, and volume of distribution. The biological half-life of ticarcillin was 72 min compared to 66 min with carbenicillin. There was a larger volume of distribution for ticarcillin than carbenicillin (15 liters versus 14 liters). The ticarcillin half-life when administered with probenecid was 108 min. Urinary recovery of ticarcillin was 77% against 95% of carbenicillin. However, approximately 10% of ticarcillin is recovered as penicilloic acid so that 95% of an intravenously administered dose is recovered.  (+info)

Pseudomonas aeruginosa ventilator-associated pneumonia: comparison of episodes due to piperacillin-resistant versus piperacillin-susceptible organisms. (27/301)

We sought to determine the epidemiological characteristics of patients in an intensive care unit (ICU) who developed ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) caused by piperacillin-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PRPA; n=34) or piperacillin-susceptible P. aeruginosa (PSPA; n=101). According to univariate analysis, the factors associated with the development of PRPA VAP were presence of an underlying fatal medical condition, immunocompromised status, longer previous hospital stay, less-severe illness at the time of ICU admission, duration of mechanical ventilation before onset of VAP, number of classes of antibiotic received, and previous exposure to imipenem or fluoroquinolone. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified the following significant independent factors: presence of an underlying fatal medical condition (odds ratio [OR], 5.6), previous fluoroquinolone use (OR, 4.6), and initial disease severity (OR, 0.8). We concluded that the clinical characteristics of patients who develop PRPA VAP differ from those of patients who develop PSPA VAP. Restricted fluoroquinolone use is the sole independent risk factor for PRPA VAP that is open to medical intervention.  (+info)

New carbenicillin-hydrolyzing beta-lactamase (CARB-7) from Vibrio cholerae non-O1, non-O139 strains encoded by the VCR region of the V. cholerae genome. (28/301)

In a previous study, an analysis of 77 ampicillin-nonsusceptible (resistant plus intermediate categories) strains of Vibrio cholerae non-O1, non-O139, isolated from aquatic environment and diarrheal stool, showed that all of them produced a beta-lactamase with a pI of 5.4. Hybridization or amplification by PCR with a probe for bla(TEM) or primers for bla(CARB) gene families was negative. In this work, an environmental ampicillin-resistant strain from this sample, ME11762, isolated from a waterway in the west region of Argentina, was studied. The nucleotide sequence of the structural gene of the beta-lactamase was determined by bidirectional sequencing of a Sau3AI fragment belonging to this isolate. The gene encodes a new 288-amino-acid protein, designated CARB-7, that shares 88.5% homology with the CARB-6 enzyme; an overall 83.2% homology with PSE-4, PSE-1, CARB-3, and the Proteus mirabilis N29 enzymes; and 79% homology with CARB-4 enzyme. The gene for this beta-lactamase could not be transferred to Escherichia coli by conjugation. The nucleotide sequence of the flanking regions of the bla(CARB-7) gene showed the occurrence of three 123-bp V. cholerae repeated sequences, all of which were found outside the predicted open reading frame. The upstream fragment of the bla(CARB-7) gene shared 93% identity with a locus situated inside V. cholerae's chromosome 2. These results strongly suggest the chromosomal location of the bla(CARB-7) gene, making this the first communication of a beta-lactamase gene located on the VCR island of the V. cholerae genome.  (+info)

Effect of osmotic stabilizers on radiometric detection of cell wall-damaged bacteria. (29/301)

The effect of osmotic stabilizers on the 14CO2-dependent radiometric detection of cell wall-damaged Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was studied in BACTEC 14C-labeled blood culture medium. The organisms were previously exposed to cefamandole or carbenicillin at 63 to 80% of the minimum inhibitory concentrations. The addition of 10% sucrose, 2.2% glycerol, and 2.2% ethylene glycol to the medium failed to reduce the time required for detection and diminished the amounts of 14CO2 released by the growing cultures. Viable counts made after 4 to 7 h of incubation showed a decreased culture density in osmotically stabilized media as compared with saline or Ficoll controls. Sucrose and Ficoll had little or no inhibitory effect on 14CO2 evolution by P. aeruginosa. The osmotic stabilizers tested did not seem to improve the survival of the bacterial inoculum and failed to increase the sensitivity of the radiometric system of detection.  (+info)

In vitro study of clavulanic acid in combination with penicillin, amoxycillin, and carbenicillin. (30/301)

The activity of clavulanic acid alone and in combination with penicillin, amoxycillin, and carbenicillin was studied. Marked reductions in the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for a wide spectrum of beta-lactamase-producing clinical isolates were found. Of particular interest were the decreased MICs of penicillin for Bacteroides fragilis and beta-lactamase-producing strains of Neisseria gonorrhoea in the presence of the clavulanic acid. Beta-lactamase-producing strains of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., and indole-negative Proteus also showed considerably increased susceptibility to amoxycillin in combination with clavulanic acid. Two beta-lactamase-producing strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa remained resistant to carbenicillin in the presence of clavulanic acid.  (+info)

Influence of R-plasmid RP1 of Pseudomonas aeruginosa on cell wall composition, drug resistance, and sensitivity to cold shock. (31/301)

R-plasmid RP1 was transferred to Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells, as indicated by their resistance to carbenicillin, ampicillin, cephaloridine, kanamycin, and tetracycline, and by the presence of a periplasmic beta-lactamase. The wild-type cells (RP1-) were lysed by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid but not by ethylene-glycol-bis(2-aminoethyl ether)-N,N-tetraacetic acid, whereas cells carrying the plasmid (RP1+) were resistant to both these chelating agents. RP1+ and RP1- strains were both sensitive to the lytic action of polymyxin B and the lethal action of cold shock, but the effect was less marked in the RP1+ cultures. A proportion of the RP1+ cells surviving cold shock lost resistance to carbenicillin, tetracycline, and kanamycin. The chemical composition of whole cells and cell walls of RP1+ differed from that RP1- in the content of cation, phospholipid, and markers for lipopolysaccharide and peptidoglycan. Differences in cell wall composition, response to ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and polymyxin B, and the effects of cold shock are all compatible with the hypothesis that RP1 confers changes in the cell envelope, probably in the outer membrane, of P. aeruginosa.  (+info)

Susceptibility of cephalothin-resistant gram-negative bacilli to piperacillin, cefuroxime, and other selected antibiotics. (32/301)

The in vitro antibacterial activity of piperacillin and cefuroxime against 180 isolates of cephalothin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae and of piperacillin against 46 isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was determined. Amikacin, gentamicin, carbenicillin, cefoxitin, and cefamandole were included for comparison. The activities of piperacillin and carbenicillin against Enterobacteriaceae were comparable. Piperacillin was appreciably more active against Pseudomonas than carbenicillin and was equivalent in activity to amikacin on a weight basis. The following beta-lactam agents were the most active against the indicated organisms (in parentheses): cefoxitin (indole-positive Proteus spp.), cefuroxime and cefoxitin, (Klebsiella spp.), piperacillin (Enterobacter spp.), cefuroxime and cefoxitin (E. coli), piperacillin and cefoxitin (Serratia spp.), and cefoxitin (Providencia spp.). Amikacin inhibited 98% of Enterobacteriaceae at clinically achievable serum levels.  (+info)