The ability of certain antimutagenic agents to prevent development of antibiotic resistance.
Resistance to multiple antimicrobial agents has now become a prominent fact of contemporary life. It is believed that poor patient compliance, e.g. interrupted or premature cessation of therapy; and misuse or abuse of antibiotics, e.g. wrong antibiotic or insufficient dose, play important roles in resistance development. We present evidence that, this form of resistance often stems from spontaneous mutations accompanied by the positive selecting pressure of the doses of antibiotics being between the MIC and MBC levels. A number of antimutagenic agents, e.g. green tea catechins, and other antioxidants, etc. are able to suppress the emergence of resistance. In many cases, these agents are capable of exerting these effects at doses which by themselves produce no visible effect on growth. In a number of cases antimutagenic substances capable of preventing resistance emergence are present in normal food stuffs. These effects are exerted against resistance to tetracyclines, fluoroquinolones, macrolides, beta-lactams, aminoglycosides and the like. The implications of these laboratory findings for practical chemotherapy are discussed.
Pillai
S P
SP
Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Kansas, 6048 Haworth Hall, 1200 Sunnyside, Lawrence, KS 66045-7534, USA. shankel@ukans.edu
Pillai
C A
CA
Shankel
D M
DM
Mitscher
L A
LA
D016587:Antimutagenic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001693:Biological Transport, Active / Q000187:drug effects; D002392:Catechin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000187:drug effects*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial / Q000235:genetics*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D004996:Ethidium / Q000378:metabolism; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D013662:Tea / Q000737:chemistry
D016587:Antimutagenic Agents; D000975:Antioxidants; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D013662:Tea; D002392:Catechin; D004996:Ethidium