In vitro activities of faropenem, ertapenem, imipenem and meropenem against Borrelia burgdorferi s.l.
Little is known about the in vitro activity of penems and carbapenems against the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. Here, faropenem, ertapenem, imipenem and meropenem as well as the third-generation cephalosporin ceftriaxone and tobramycin were tested in vitro against 11 isolates of the B. burgdorferi sensu lato complex. On a microg/mL basis, ertapenem was the most potent carbapenem (minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) range: 0.015-0.125 microg/mL), with in vitro activity comparable with that of ceftriaxone against Borrelia. These findings are supported by the results of time-kill experiments in a Borrelia afzelii skin isolate, demonstrating a >3 log10 unit (99.9%) reduction of the inoculum after 96 h of exposure to either drug at a concentration of three log2 unit dilutions above the respective MIC.
Rödel
Rebecca
R
Institute of Medical Microbiology & Infection Control, University Hospital of Frankfurt, Paul-Ehrlich Str. 40, D-60596 Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
Freyer
Alexandra
A
Bittner
Thomas
T
Schäfer
Volker
V
Hunfeld
Klaus-Peter
KP
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000187:drug effects*; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D050296:Microbial Viability / Q000187:drug effects; D013997:Time Factors; D047090:beta-Lactams / Q000494:pharmacology*
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D047090:beta-Lactams