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Postantibiotic effect of amikacin and rifapentine against Mycobacterium avium complex

L E Bermudez1, M Wu, L S Young

  • 1Kuzell Institute for Arthritis and Infectious Diseases, Medical Research Institute of San Francisco, California Pacific Medical Center.

Insights

Amikacin exhibits a significant postantibiotic effect (PAE) against Mycobacterium avium, lasting up to 48 hours. Rifapentine showed minimal PAE, highlighting amikacin

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Pharmacology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Postantibiotic effect (PAE) is crucial for treating chronic intracellular infections, particularly mycobacterial diseases.
  • Amikacin demonstrates therapeutic activity against Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), despite short-term serum concentration exceeding the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate and compare the postantibiotic effect (PAE) of amikacin and rifapentine against Mycobacterium avium.
  • To evaluate the impact of drug concentration and exposure time on the PAE of these antibiotics against M. avium.

Main Methods:

  • Mycobacterium avium cultures were exposed to varying concentrations (1x, 4x, 10x MIC) of amikacin and rifapentine for up to 120 minutes.
  • Bacterial regrowth was monitored and compared to untreated control cultures to determine the PAE.
  • Different bacterial inoculums (10^4 and 10^7 CFU) were used to assess the influence of bacterial load on PAE.

Main Results:

  • Rifapentine demonstrated no significant PAE at 5x MIC and only slight growth inhibition at 10x MIC for 2 hours.
  • Amikacin exhibited a notable PAE against M. avium, persisting for up to 48 hours at concentrations of 4x and 8x MIC with exposure times of 30-120 minutes.
  • A substantial PAE of 22 hours was observed with amikacin at 4x MIC for 30 minutes against a high inoculum (10^7 CFU) of M. avium.

Conclusions:

  • Amikacin possesses a prolonged postantibiotic effect against Mycobacterium avium, suggesting its potential utility in managing MAC infections.
  • Rifapentine displayed a negligible PAE against M. avium, indicating a different mechanism of action or limited efficacy in this context.
  • The findings underscore the importance of considering PAE in antibiotic selection for chronic intracellular infections caused by mycobacteria.

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