ABSTRACT
The aim of this investigation was to assess the in-vitro interaction of two antifungal agents, econazole-nitrate and chelerythrine, against ten fluconazole-resistant clinical isolates and one ATCC type strain 10231 of Candida albicans. The checkerboard microdilution method was performed according to the recommendations of the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards, and the results were determined by visual examination. The interaction intensity was tested in all isolates using the fractional inhibitory concentration index [FICI]. These experiments showed synergism between econazole-nitrate and chelerythrine in antifungal activity against C. albicans, and no antagonistic activity was observed in any of the strains tested. Moreover, time-kill curves were performed with selected strains to confirm the positive interactions. The similarity between the results of the FICI values and the time-kill curves revealed that chelerythrine greatly enhances the antifungal effects of econazole-nitrate against isolates of C. albicans. This synergistic effect may markedly reduce the dose of econazole-nitrate required to treat candidiasis, thereby decreasing the econazole-nitrate toxic side effects. This novel synergism might provide a potential combination treatment against fungal infections
ABSTRACT
Mycoplasmosis caused by mycoplasma has immensely reduced the performance of commercial animal husbandry, along with prevalence and increase of drug resistance in mycoplasma, thus new agents and therapies are urgently needed. Triclosan is a broad spectrum antimicrobial agent with a favorable safety profile. In the present study, we tested the antimycoplasmal activity of triclosan alone, as well as the in-vitro interaction of triclosan and the fluoroquinolones, gatifloxacin [GAT], moxifloxacin [MXF], levofloxacin [LVX], sparfloxacin [SPX], ciprofloxacin [CIP], enrofloxacin [EFX], and norfloxacin [NOR], against five mycoplasma species. This study demonstrated that triclosan had antimycoplasmal activity against both fluoroquinolones-sensitive species and a fluoroquinolones-resistant species isolated from clinic, with minimum inhibitory concentrations [MICs] of 16.0-64.0 micro g/mL and 64.0 micro g/ mL, respectively. A synergistic antimycoplasmal effect between triclosan and GAT, MFX or EFX against the five mycoplasma species was observed, with modulation factors [MFs] of 4-8, 4-16, 8-32, respectively, and fractional inhibitory concentration indexes [FICIs] of 0.375- 0.500, 0.350-0.500, 0.281-0.375, respectively. The combination of triclosan with LVX, SPX, CIP or NOR displayed either synergistic activity or indifference against the same mycoplasma species with MFs of 2-64, 4-16, 2-16, 2-64, respectively, while FICI values range from 0.516- 0.750, 0.500-0.625, 0.306-0.750, and 0.615-0.750, respectively. No antagonism was observed for any drug combination against any of the species tested. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report that triclosan has synergistic activity with fluoroquinolones against mycoplasma species