Acinetobacter baumannii is responsible for 10% of all nosocomial infections and has >50% mortality rates when causing ventilator-associated pneumonia. In this proof-of-concept study, we evaluated SPR741, an antibiotic adjuvant that permeabilizes the Gram-negative membrane, in combination with rifampin against AB5075, an extensively drug-resistant (XDR) A. baumannii strain. In standard in vitro assays and in a murine pulmonary model, we found that this drug combination can significantly reduce bacterial burden and promote animal survival despite an aggressive infection.
Keywords: Acinetobacter; ESKAPE pathogens; animal models; antibacterial; antibiotic adjuvants; antibiotic resistance; antibiotics; mouse model; pulmonary model; virulent strain.
Copyright © 2017 Zurawski et al.