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Interaction of meropenem with humoral and phagocytic defences

C S Easmon1

  • 1Department of Medical Microbiology, Wright-Fleming Institute, St. Mary's Hospital Medical School, London, UK.

The Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
|September 1, 1989
PubMed

Insights

Meropenem effectively killed intracellular Staphylococcus aureus, unlike imipenem. Neither antibiotic significantly impacted bacterial lysis or immune cell interactions with opsonized S. aureus.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Pharmacology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Carbapenem antibiotics like meropenem and imipenem are crucial for treating severe bacterial infections.
  • Understanding their intracellular activity and effects on host-pathogen interactions is vital for optimizing therapy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the efficacy of meropenem and imipenem against intracellular Staphylococcus aureus.
  • To evaluate their impact on the lysis of Escherichia coli and the interaction of opsonized S. aureus with immune cells.

Main Methods:

  • In vitro assessment of meropenem and imipenem activity against intracellular S. aureus.
  • Analysis of bacterial lysis patterns for serum-sensitive and resistant E. coli strains.
  • Evaluation of opsonized S. aureus uptake and killing by human neutrophils and mouse macrophages.

Main Results:

  • Meropenem demonstrated bactericidal activity against intracellular S. aureus at concentrations eight times the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC).
  • Imipenem did not exhibit significant killing of intracellular S. aureus under the tested conditions.
  • No significant effects of either antibiotic were observed on E. coli lysis or immune cell-mediated killing of opsonized S. aureus.

Conclusions:

  • Meropenem possesses superior activity against intracellular Staphylococcus aureus compared to imipenem.
  • The tested carbapenems do not significantly influence key host-pathogen interactions involving E. coli lysis or phagocytosis/killing by immune cells.

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