In-vitro activity of 21 antimicrobial agents against Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Brussels.

The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of 21 antimicrobial agents was measured for 80 strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolated in Brussels in 1978. Bimodal distributions were found for penicillin G, ampicillin, amoxycillin, carbenicillin, and cephalexin. Of the strains, 17.5% were relatively resistant to penicillin G (MIC greater than 0.08 microgram/ml) 27.5% to ampicillin (MIC greater than 0.16 microgram/ml), 23.8% to amoxycillin, and 43.3% to carbenicillin. Cefotaxime was the most active antibiotic, with MICs in the nanogram range; 3.8% and 5% of the strains were relatively resistant to cephaloridine and cephalexin respectively, but no strains were resistant to cefazolin, cefuroxime, or cefotaxime. Resistance to tetracycline, doxycycline, minocycline, erythromycin, and spiramycin (MIC greater than 1 microgram/ml) was found in 6.3%, 2.5%, 5%, and 51.3% of the strains respectively. A very good correlation was present between chloramphenicol and thiamphenicol, with 16.3% and 10% of relatively resistant strains respectively. Only two isolates showed an MIC greater than 1.25 microgram/ml for rifampicin, and 10% of the strains needed greater than or equal to 12 microgram/ml of spectinomycin for complete inhibition of growth. A very high energy was found for the 20 : 1 combination of sulphamethoxazole and trimethoprim, with only one isolate resistant to this combination. None of the strains tested produced beta-lactamase.

Bacteriostatic and bactericidal activities of 24 antimicrobial agents against Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni.

The bacteriostatic and bactericidal activities of 24 antimicrobial agents were tested with the Dynatech MIC 2000 system against 86 strains of Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni from human sources. The penicillins (penicillin G, ampicillin, amoxycillin, carbenicillin) had poor activity. Ampicillin and amoxycillin were equally active. Cefotaxime revealed a rather good activity. Erythromycin, gentamicin, tobramycin, amikacin, and furazolidone were the most active compounds. Two strains (2.3%) were resistant to erythromycin. One strain (1.2%) was completely resistant to tobramycin. The tetracyclines (tetracyline, doxycycline, minocycline) were generally effective, but 8% of the strains were totally resistant to them. Minocycline was the most active. Chloramphenicol, thiamphenicol, and clindamycin had good activity. The bacteriostatic and bactericidal distributions for colistin, nalidixic acid, and metronidazole were broad.

Susceptibility of Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni to twenty-nine antimicrobial agents.

The activity of 29 antimicrobial agents was tested against 95 strains of Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni isolated from human stools. Furazolidone and gentamycin were the most active agents. The tetracyclines, erythromycin, and chloramphenicol were very active against most of the strains, but with each antibiotic a few resistant strains were found. The penicillins were relatively inactive, and the cephalosporins tested were only active against occasional strains.