title: The Lantibiotic Lacticin 3147 Prevents Systemic Spread of Staphylococcus aureus in a Murine Infection Model.
abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the in vivo activity of the lantibiotic lacticin 3147 against the luminescent Staphylococcus aureus strain Xen 29 using a murine model. Female BALB/c mice (7 weeks old, 17 g) were divided into groups (n = 5) and infected with the Xen 29 strain via the intraperitoneal route at a dose of 1 × 10(6) cfu/animal. After 1.5 hr, the animals were treated subcutaneously with doses of phosphate-buffered saline (PBS; negative control) or lacticin 3147. Luminescent imaging was carried 3 and 5 hours postinfection. Mice were then sacrificed, and the levels of S. aureus Xen 29 in the liver, spleen, and kidneys were quantified. Notably, photoluminescence and culture-based analysis both revealed that lacticin 3147 successfully controlled the systemic spread of S. aureus in mice thus indicating that lacticin 3147 has potential as a chemotherapeutic agent for in vivo applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University College Cork, College Road, Cork, Ireland.
authors.forename: Clare
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Piper
authors.forename: Pat G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Casey
authors.forename: Colin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Paul D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Cotter
authors.forename: R Paul
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Ross