Characterisation and protective capacity of monoclonal antibodies elicited in mice against protein epitopes of antibiotic-exposed Escherichia coli. (65/74)

The binding capacity and the protective activity of three monoclonal antibodies (MAbs)-ARM 1-4, ARM 1-7 and ARM 2-2-obtained from spleen cells of mice immunised with Escherichia coli O6:K-pre-treated with sub-MIC of aztreonam were studied. The MAbs belonged to IgG1 isotype and showed different reactivity toward protein epitopes of E. coli in an immunoblotting assay. ARM 1-4 recognised epitopes on molecules of 30 kDa and 40 kDa. ARM 1-7 identified an epitope of a molecule of 41 kDa, and ARM 2-2 recognised epitopes of molecules of 15 kDa and 41 kDa. In ELISA the MAbs cross-reacted with E. coli O7:K-, E. coli O111:B4 and E. coli O128:K- with different binding affinity. Furthermore, the MAbs showed complement-dependent bactericidal activity. The MAbs displayed different protective capacities when given to mice 90 min before lethal challenges with 2 x LD50, 4 x LD50 and 8 x LD50 of E. coli strains. In all but one instance (ARM 1-4 versus E. coli O7:K-) it was not possible to correlate protective capacity with binding affinity of a MAb to a given bacterial cell. Therefore, the epitopes recognised by the MAb may be more closely associated with bacterial virulence than in binding to the bacterial cell.  (+info)

Antibacterial activity of BMS-180680, a new catechol-containing monobactam. (66/74)

The in vitro activities of a new catechol-containing monobactam, BMS-180680 (SQ 84,100), were compared to those of aztreonam, ceftazidime, imipenem, piperacillin-tazobactam, ciprofloxacin, amikacin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. BMS-180680 was often the most active compound against many species of the family Enterobacteriaceae, with MICs at which 90% of the isolates were inhibited (MIC90s) of < or = 0.5 microg/ml for Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Citrobacter diversus, Enterobacter aerogenes, Serratia marcescens, Proteus spp., and Providencia spp. BMS-180680 had moderate activities (MIC90s of 2 to 8 microg/ml) against Citrobacter freundii, Morganella morganii, Shigella spp., and non-E. aerogenes Enterobacter spp. BMS-180680 was the only antibiotic evaluated that was active against >90% of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC90, 0.25 microg/ml), Burkholderia cepacia, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (MIC90s, 1 microg/ml) strains tested. BMS-180680 was inactive against most strains of Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas stutzeri, Pseudomonas diminuta, and Burkholderia pickettii. BMS-180680 was moderately active (MIC90s of 4 to 8 microg/ml) against Alcaligenes spp. and Acinetobacter lwoffii and less active (MIC90, 16 microg/ml) against Acinetobacter calcoaceticus-Acinetobacter baumanii complex. BMS-180680 lacked activity against gram-positive bacteria and anaerobic bacteria. Both tonB and cir fiu double mutants of E. coli had greatly decreased susceptibility to BMS-180680. Of the TEM, PSE, and chromosomal-encoded beta-lactamases tested, only the K1 enzyme hydrolyzed BMS-180680 to any measurable extent. Like aztreonam, BMS-180680 bound preferentially to penicillin-binding protein 3. The MICs of BMS-180680 were not influenced by the presence of hematin or 5% sheep blood in the test medium or with incubation in an atmosphere containing 5% CO2. BMS-180680 MICs obtained under strict anaerobic conditions were significantly higher than those obtained in ambient air.  (+info)

Comparison of screening methods for detection of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases and their prevalence among blood isolates of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. in a Belgian teaching hospital. (67/74)

Using a set of 33 well-defined extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing strains of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, we compared three screening methods for ESBL detection: (i) a double-disk synergy test, (ii) a three-dimensional test (both the double-disk synergy test and the three-dimensional test were performed with ceftriaxone, ceftazidime, aztreonam, and cefepime), and (iii) the Etest ESBL screen (AB Biodisk, Solna, Sweden), based on the recognition of a reduction in the ceftazidime MIC in the presence of clavulanic acid. In the double-disk test, all four indicator antibiotics scored equally and 31 of the 33 reference strains were recognized. In the three-dimensional test, ceftriaxone was the only satisfactory indicator and 30 ESBL-positive strains were detected by this antibiotic. Both systems produced two false-positive results with cefepime. With the Etest ESBL screen, 15 of 16 TEM-related and 11 of 16 SHV-related ESBL-producing strains scored positive. In 10 cases the clavulanic acid on one end of the strip interfered with the MIC determination for ceftazidime, which was read on the opposite end. This MIC had to be determined with an extra ceftazidime-only strip. No false-positive results were noted. Eighty-six blood isolates of E. coli and Klebsiella species were screened for ESBL expression by the double-disk and three-dimensional tests, both with ceftriaxone. Six strains with suspicious antibiogram phenotypes also gave positive results by the double-disk test. One E. coli strain remained undetected by the three-dimensional test. Identification of the enzymes suspected of being ESBLs by isoelectric focusing (all strains) and DNA sequencing (1 strain) confirmed the screening test results except for one Klebsiella oxytoca strain, which proved to be a hyperproducer of its chromosomal enzyme and which also had a negative Etest score. The five true ESBL producers were all confirmed by the Etest ESBL screen. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis proved that the E. coli strains were unrelated, but that two of the three K. pneumoniae strains were closely related.  (+info)

Potentiation of beta-lactams against Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains by Ro 48-1256, a bridged monobactam inhibitor of AmpC beta-lactamases. (68/74)

Ro 48-1256 is a bridged monobactam inhibitor of Class C beta-lactamases, without significant antibacterial activity of its own. It was tested in combination with imipenem, meropenem, piperacillin and ceftazidime against Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates, mutants and transconjugants. Imipenem was potentiated against all strains where the AmpC enzyme was inducible or derepressed, with its MICs being reduced from 1-2 mg/L to 0.25-0.5 mg/L for most isolates and from 8-16 mg/L to 1-2 mg/L for those lacking OprD (D2 porin). Ro 48-1256 also abolished in-vitro selection of OprD-deficient mutants by imipenem. Ceftazidime and piperacillin were potentiated against strains derepressed for AmpC enzyme, but not against those where the enzyme remained inducible. For over 90% of AmpC-derepressed organisms, the MICs of ceftazidime were reduced to < or = 8 mg/L by Ro 48-1256 (4 mg/L) and those of piperacillin were reduced to < or = 16 mg/L. Meropenem, which is very stable to AmpC, was not potentiated. Ro 48-1256 did not potentiate piperacillin, ceftazidime or carbapenems when resistance was mediated by Class A, B or D enzymes. Tazobactam, tested as control, had opposite behaviour to Ro 48-1256, potentiating beta-lactams when resistance was due to Class A beta-lactamases but failing to reverse resistance mediated by AmpC. Ro 48-1256 could be used with imipenem to overcome resistance mediated by loss of OprD, or with ceftazidime or piperacillin to overcome derepression of AmpC.  (+info)

Evaluation of a new selective medium for the isolation of Corynebacterium urealyticum. (69/74)

A new selective medium (CBU agar) was compared with blood agar (BA) medium for primary isolation of Corynebacterium urealyticum from urine and skin samples of hospitalised patients. Overall, the CBU agar detected C. urealyticum in 14 (4.6%) of 302 urine samples and the BA medium detected the organism in four (1.3%), but most cultures which were positive only on CBU agar had < 10(4) cfu/ml. Six strains of C. urealyticum were isolated from 60 skin samples with CBU agar, whereas none was detected with BA. Although most skin samples had heavy inocula, the selective agar facilitated the recognition of low colony counts (< or = 10 cfu/plate) of C. urealyticum by reducing the growth of competing flora. Challenge of the selective medium with reference and clinical strains showed that CBU agar was inhibitory for gram-negative bacteria and reduced the gram-positive flora, allowing the growth of C. urealyticum strains. The new selective medium appears to be a useful epidemiological tool to study urinary and skin colonisation by C. urealyticum.  (+info)

Characterization and amino acid sequence of the OXY-2 group beta-lactamase of pI 5.7 isolated from aztreonam-resistant Klebsiella oxytoca strain HB60. (70/74)

Klebsiella oxytoca strain HB60 is highly resistant to cefoperazone and aztreonam (MICs = 128 mg/L). It produces a chromosomally encoded beta-lactamase of pI 5.7 which was highly efficient against penicillins, first-generation cephalosporins and cefoperazone, a non-oxyimino third-generation cephalosporin. Aztreonam and oxyimino broad-spectrum cephalosporins were less good substrates. The beta-lactamase activity was susceptible to inhibition by clavulanic acid (IC50 = 1 microM). The enzyme purified to homogeneity had a specific activity towards benzylpenicillin of 3670 U/mg. The 263 amino acid residues of the protein were sequenced by Edman degradation of proteolytic peptides. The beta-lactamase was shown to belong to the OXY-2 group as it had only one amino acid substitution (Asn for Asp at ABL position 197) compared with the beta-lactamase (pI 5.2) from the aztreonam-susceptible K. oxytoca strain SL911 and two substitutions (Ala223 for Val and Asp255 for Asn) compared with the beta-lactamase (pI 6.4) from the aztreonam-resistant K. oxytoca strain D488. These three OXY-2-group enzymes behave in the same way towards beta-lactam antibiotics. The variability in the resistance of these K. oxytoca strains would thus seem to be due to variation in the level of production of the beta-lactamases rather than to structural alteration of the enzymes.  (+info)

Ceftazidime and aztreonam resistance in Providencia stuartii: characterization of a natural TEM-derived extended-spectrum beta-lactamase, TEM-60. (71/74)

A plasmid-encoded beta-lactamase produced from a clinical strain of Providencia stuartii has been purified and characterized. The gene coding for the beta-lactamase was cloned and sequenced. It appears to be a new natural TEM-derived enzyme, named TEM-60. Point mutations (Q39K, L51P, E104K, and R164S) are present with respect to the TEM-1 enzyme; the mutation L51P has never been previously reported, with the exception of the chromosomally encoded extended-spectrum beta-lactamase PER-1. Kinetic parameters relative to penicillins, cephalosporins, and monobactams other than mechanism-based inactivators were related to the in vitro susceptibility phenotype.  (+info)

Cefepime-aztreonam: a unique double beta-lactam combination for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. (72/74)

An in vitro pharmacokinetic model was used to determine if aztreonam could enhance the pharmacodynamics of cefepime or ceftazidime against an isogenic panel of Pseudomonas aeruginosa 164, including wild-type (WT), partially derepressed (PD), and fully derepressed (FD) phenotypes. Logarithmic-phase cultures were exposed to peak concentrations achieved in serum with 1- or 2-g intravenous doses, elimination pharmacokinetics were simulated, and viable bacterial counts were measured over three 8-h dosing intervals. In studies with cefepime and cefepime-aztreonam against the PD strain, samples were also filter sterilized, assayed for active cefepime, and assayed for nitrocefin hydrolysis activity before and after overnight dialysis. Against WT strains, the cefepime-aztreonam combination was the most active regimen, but viable counts at 24 h were only 1 log below those in cefepime-treated cultures. Against PD and FD strains, the antibacterial activity of cefepime-aztreonam was significantly enhanced over that of each drug alone, with 3.5 logs of killing by 24 h. Hydrolysis and bioassay studies demonstrated that aztreonam was inhibiting the extracellular cephalosporinase that had accumulated and was thus protecting cefepime in the extracellular environment. In contrast to cefepime-aztreonam, the pharmacodynamics of ceftazidime-aztreonam were not enhanced over those of aztreonam alone. Further pharmacodynamic studies with five other P. aeruginosa strains producing increased levels of cephalosporinase demonstrated that the enhanced pharmacodynamics of cefepime-aztreonam were not unique to the isogenic panel. The results of these studies demonstrate that aztreonam can enhance the antibacterial activity of cefepime against derepressed mutants of P. aeruginosa producing increased levels of cephalosporinase. This positive interaction appears to be due in part to the ability of aztreonam to protect cefepime from extracellular cephalosporinase inactivation. Clinical evaluation of this combination is warranted.  (+info)