Development of a Rapid Multi-residue Assay for Detecting β-lactams Using Penicillin Binding Protein 2x

Objective To develop a rapid multi-residue assay for detecting 16 demanded by the European Union （EU）. Methods A recombinant penicillin-binding protein （PBP） 2x＊ from Streptococcus pneumoniae R6 was expressed in vitro and six β-1actams were conjugated to HRP by four methods. A rapid multi-residue assay for β-1actams was established with PBP2x＊ and HRP-conjugate. Results PBP2x＊ was expressed and purified successfully and the ideal HRP-conjugate was identified. The multi-residue assay was developed. After optimization, penicillin G, ampicillin, amoxicillin, cloxacillin, dicloxacillin, oxacillin, nafcillin, cephalexin, ceftiofur, cefalonium, cefquinome, cefazolin, cefoperazone, cephacetrile, and cephapirin can be detected at levels below MRL in milk with simple pretreatment. Conclusion This assay developed can detect all 16 β-1actams demanded by the European Union （EU）. The whole procedure takes only 45 min and can detect 42 samples and the standards with duplicate analysis.

(-)-Epicatechin gallate serves as a novel new delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1(NDM-1)inhibitor

Theβ-lactam antibiotic resistance caused by NDM-1 has become a major crisis of global public health.We have previously screened out(-)-epicatechin gallate(ECG)as a potent NDM-1 inhibitor.We further discussed its inhibitory effect and action mode in the present study.According to our results,ECG reversibly inactivated NDM-1 in a non-competitive mode,with an IC50 value of 4.48μM.ECG effectively recovered the activity of severalβ-lactam antibiotics against resistant strain harboring blaNDM-1.Especially,the effects on carbapenems were worth mentioning.The zinc supplement assay indicated a zinc-related mechanism of ECG.Different from traditional chelating agents,it showed low toxicity both in vivo and in vitro.In a word,our findings provided a promising NDM-1 inhibitor,ECG,which was able to assist carbapenems against NDM-1-producing strain.

Total Alkaloids from Sophora Alopecuroides L.Increase Susceptibility of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases Producing Escherichia coli Isolates to Cefotaxime and Ceftazidime

Objective： To evaluate the antimicrobial activity of total alkaloids extracted from Sophorea alopecuroides L. （TASA） against clinical isolated extended-spectrum beta-lactamases （ESBLs） producing Escherichia coil （E.. coil） strains. Methods： The antibacterial activity of TASA either itself or in combination with cefotaxime （CTX） or ceftazidime （CAZ） was investigated by using the microbroth dilution method and phenotypic confirmatory disk diffusion test against three clinical isolated ESBLs-producing E. coil strains; the interactions of TASA and C＇I＇X or CAZ were ascertained by evaluating the fractional inhibitory concentration index （FICI）. Results： The antibacterial activity of either TASA itself or in combination with C＇IX or CAZ was found. The minimum inhibitory concentration （MICs） of TASA against the ESBLs producing isolates was 12.5 mg/mL. In the combinations with a sub-inhibitory concentration of TASA, a synergistic effect on CTX and CAZ against the ESBLs producing isolates was observed. Similarly, the isolates exposed to lower dose of TASA yielded an increased susceptibility to CTX and CAZ by 8-16 folds determined by microdilution assay. Moreover, enzymatic detection of ESBLs demonstrated that TASA induced reversal resistance to CTX and CAZ partially by a mechanism of inhibition of ESBLs activity in these isolates. Additionally, in the tested isolates following the exposure of TASA, molecular analysis verified the SHV-type beta-lactamase encoding ESBL gene in these isolates, and no mutation was introduced into the ESBL gene. Conclusions： These results suggest that TASA could be used as a source of natural compound with pharmacological activity of reversal resistance to antimicrobial agent. These findings also indicated that the application of the TASA in combination with antibiotics might prove useful in the control and treatment of infectious diseases caused by the ESBLs producing enterobacteriaceae.