Research Article: Synergistic Effects of Gentamicin, Cefepime, and Ciprofloxacin on Biofilm of Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Abstract:
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen associated with different nosocomial infections. This bacterium is classified as a “critical pathogen” by WHO and is one of the “ESKAPE” organisms. P. aeruginosa causes different types of infections including respiratory tract infections (RTIs), urinary tract infections (UTIs), wound infections, dermatitis, skin/soft tissue infections, bone/joint infections, septicemia, and bacteremia. Mortality associated with P. aeruginosa infections is reported to exceed well beyond many other Gram-negative bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus. In the case of hospital-acquired pneumonia, multi-drug-resistant strains of P. aeruginosa (MDR-PA) are an independent risk factor for mortality. Quite recently, MDR-PA, resistant to levofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, imipenem-cilastatin, meropenem, aztreonam, cefepime, ceftazidime, and piperacillin-tazobactam, are labelled as difficult-to-treat (DTR) infections., In the current scenario of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), combination therapy has been recommended to treat bloodstream infections caused by P. aeruginosa., Combining any conventional or novel ?-lactam with aminoglycosides or a fluoroquinolone is prioritized., Yet, for the use of empiric combination versus monotherapy, no consensus has been reached among the scientific community. Although one study described synergistic effects of ?-lactam in combination with an aminoglycoside and ?-lactam with a fluoroquinolones on planktonic Pseudomonas aeruginosa, no study has focused on biofilm for investigating synergistic effects of these antibiotics. Bacterial biofilms are a formidable barrier against the efficacy of antibiotics that makes biofilm-associated infections notoriously difficult to treat. The three-dimensional structure of the biofilm results in an anaerobic environment, hence some antibiotics such as fluoroquinolones, ?-lactams, and aminoglycosides alone lose efficacy in such environment. On the other hand, exposure to sub-lethal or sub-minimal inhibitory concentrations of certain antibiotics significantly expedites biofilm formation., In short, not much is known about the efficacy of antibiotic therapy in combination against infections involving pseudomonal biofilms. Therefore, in the current study, we evaluated effects of ciprofloxacin (CIP), gentamicin (GEN), and cefepime (CEF) on biofilm formation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It is one of the very few studies focusing on synergistic effects of multiple antibiotics on the biofilm of P. aeruginosa.
Introduction:
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen associated with different nosocomial infections. This bacterium is classified as a “critical pathogen” by WHO and is one of the “ESKAPE” organisms. P. aeruginosa causes different types of infections including respiratory tract infections (RTIs), urinary tract infections (UTIs), wound infections, dermatitis, skin/soft tissue infections, bone/joint infections, septicemia, and bacteremia. Mortality associated with P. aeruginosa infections is reported to exceed well…
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