In Vitro Effects of Some Antibiotics on Purified β-Glucosidases from Rat Liver and Kidney Tissues

Background: Antibiotics are antimicrobial drugs used to treat and prevent infections. Unconscious use of antibiotics leads to many negative results. This study aimed to emphasize the negative aspects of antibiotics by determining their effects on purified enzymes. Methods: Beta glucosidase enzymes (BGLs) were purified from rat liver and kidney tissues using the sepharose-4B-LTyrosine-1-Naphthylamine hydrophobic interaction chromatography method. Liver BGL enzyme was purified 30.2-fold with a yield of 43.4%, while kidney BGL was purified 5.1-fold with a yield of 12.2%. Purified enzymes were visualized using SDS-PAGE. In vitro inhibition effects of ampicillin cefuroxime, amoxicillin-clavulanate, cefazolin sodium, gentamicin, and ceftriaxone antibiotics were determined on purified BGLs. Results: Ampicillin was found to inhibit rat liver and kidney BGLs competitively and uncompetitively, with IC50 values of 69.56 and 25.30 mM, respectively. Other antibiotics investigated did not significantly reduce liver BGL activity. Cefuroxime inhibited rat kidney BGL uncompetitively with IC50 values of 76.88 mM, while amoxicillin-clavulanate and cefazolin sodium inhibited it noncompetitively, with IC50 values of 41.32 and 98.81 mM, respectively. Gentamicin and ceftriaxone, whose effects were investigated, did not reduce kidney BGL activity. Conclusions: Some of the commonly used antibiotics reduce liver and kidney BGL activity, and this indicates that they may potentially impair metabolic functions. These results emphasize that caution should be exercised when using antibiotics.