Antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter: could efflux pump inhibitors control infection?
Campylobacter is the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis in the world. Poultry is the main reservoir of human infections. The widespread use of antibiotics in agriculture and veterinary medicine has resulted in the emergence of an increasing number of antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter strains that can be transmitted to humans through the food chain. Of particular concern to public health is the prevalence of resistance to macrolides and fluoroquinolones that are used in the treatment of life-threatening campylobacteriosis. The CmeABC efflux system has been shown to contribute to the intrinsic and acquired resistance to these antibiotics. In addition, by mediating resistance to bile, it is essential for colonization of the chicken gut in vivo. Inhibition of CmeABC may provide an effective means of reversing antibiotic resistance and decreasing the transmission of Campylobacter via the food chain. This would positively impact on public health by decreasing the morbidity, mortality and increased healthcare costs associated with the treatment of antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter.
Quinn
Teresa
T
Centre for Food Safety, School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
Bolla
Jean-Michel
JM
Pagès
Jean-Marie
JM
Fanning
Séamus
S
D018435:ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002169:Campylobacter Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans
D018435:ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents