Muniyasamy Rajeshwari, Manjubala I
School of Biosciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India.
Front Microbiol. 2024 Aug 6;15:1458267. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1458267. eCollection 2024.
, a Gram-positive bacterium, is a predominant pathogen associated with various infections. The rapid emergence of antibiotic resistance has intensified the challenge of managing fracture-related infections in severe osteoporotic patients. Rifampicin, a potent antimicrobial agent employed against fracture and implant-related infections, necessitates combination therapies due to its susceptibility to antibiotic resistance. In this study, we explored the potential of baicalein, a bioactive flavonoid from and , in combination with rifampicin against biofilms . The minimum inhibitory concentration of baicalein and rifampicin were determined as 500 μg/mL and 12.5 ng/mL respectively. The synergistic activity of baicalein and rifampicin was determined by the fractional inhibitory concentration index (FICI) using checkerboard assay. The results showed the FICI of baicalein and rifampicin was lesser than 0.5, demonstrating synergistic effect. Furthermore, the efficacy of baicalein and rifampicin, both individually and in combination, was evaluated for biofilm inhibition and eradication. Scanning electron microscopy and confocal laser microscopy also confirmed that the synergistic combinations effectively removed most of the biofilms and partially killed pre-formed biofilms. In conclusion, the findings demonstrate that baicalein is as effective as rifampicin in inhibiting and eradicating biofilms. Their combination exhibits synergistic effect, enhancing their bactericidal effect in completely eradicating biofilms. The findings of this research underscore the research potential of combining baicalein and rifampicin as a novel therapeutic strategy against biofilms, offering a promising direction for future research in the treatment of fracture-related infections.
金黄色葡萄球菌是一种革兰氏阳性菌，是与各种感染相关的主要病原体。抗生素耐药性的迅速出现加剧了在严重骨质疏松患者中管理骨折相关感染的挑战。利福平是一种用于治疗骨折和植入物相关感染的强效抗菌剂，由于其易产生抗生素耐药性，需要联合治疗。在本研究中，我们探索了黄芩苷（一种从黄芩和其他植物中提取的生物活性黄酮类化合物）与利福平联合对抗金黄色葡萄球菌生物膜的潜力。黄芩苷和利福平的最低抑菌浓度分别测定为500μg/mL和12.5ng/mL。使用棋盘法通过分数抑菌浓度指数（FICI）测定黄芩苷和利福平的协同活性。结果表明，黄芩苷和利福平的FICI小于0.5，显示出协同作用。此外，还评估了黄芩苷和利福平单独及联合使用对生物膜抑制和根除的效果。扫描电子显微镜和共聚焦激光显微镜也证实，协同组合有效地去除了大部分生物膜，并部分杀死了预先形成的生物膜。总之，研究结果表明，黄芩苷在抑制和根除金黄色葡萄球菌生物膜方面与利福平一样有效。它们的组合表现出协同作用，增强了它们在完全根除金黄色葡萄球菌生物膜方面的杀菌效果。本研究结果强调了将黄芩苷和利福平联合作为一种对抗金黄色葡萄球菌生物膜的新型治疗策略的研究潜力，为未来治疗骨折相关金黄色葡萄球菌感染的研究提供了一个有希望的方向。
