In vitro activity of carvacrol in combination with meropenem against carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae

Kose E.

FOLIA MICROBIOLOGICA, cilt.67, sa.1, ss.143-156, 2022 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 67 Sayı: 1
  • Basım Tarihi: 2022
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1007/s12223-021-00908-7
  • Dergi Adı: FOLIA MICROBIOLOGICA
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Agricultural & Environmental Science Database, Aquatic Science & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), BIOSIS, CAB Abstracts, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Veterinary Science Database
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.143-156
  • Akdeniz Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Carbapenem resistance observed in Klebsiella pneumoniae strains limits treatment options. Therefore, use of antibiotics combined with bioactive compounds may be an important strategy to control K. pneumoniae. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the activity of combination of carvacrol and meropenem on carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae (CRKP) strains. The presence of bla(OXA-48) carbapenemase in all 25 CRKP strains was identified using the PCR technique. The combination of carvacrol and meropenem was tested for antimicrobial activity on CRKP strains. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of carvacrol and meropenem were detected within a range of 32-128 mu g/mL using the broth microdilution method. Synergy between carvacrol and meropenem was observed on 8 of the 25 CRKP strains by checkerboard assay (FICI = 0.5) and confirmed by time-kill assay. According to the live-dead test results, the viability percentage of the cells exposed to synergistic combination was 35.47% at the end of 24 h. The membrane damage caused by the synergistic combination was spectrophotometrically measured (A = 0.21) and further confirmed by SEM analysis. According to the MTT assay, both carvacrol and meropenem did not show any statistically significant cytotoxic effect on Vero cells (p > 0.05). In conclusion, the results suggest that carvacrol and meropenem can act synergistically to inhibit the growth of CRKP.