Antimicrobial Activity of a Lipidated Temporin L Analogue against Carbapenemase-Producing <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> Clinical Isolates

oleh: Emanuela Roscetto, Rosa Bellavita, Rossella Paolillo, Francesco Merlino, Nicola Molfetta, Paolo Grieco, Elisabetta Buommino, Maria Rosaria Catania

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2021-10-01

Deskripsi

Over the years, the increasing acquisition of antibiotic resistance genes has led to the emergence of highly resistant bacterial strains and the loss of standard antibiotics’ efficacy, including β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations and the last line carbapenems. <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> is considered one of the major exponents of a group of multidrug-resistant ESKAPE pathogens responsible for serious healthcare-associated infections. In this study, we proved the antimicrobial activity of two analogues of Temporin L against twenty carbapenemase-producing <i>K. pneumoniae</i> clinical isolates. According to the antibiotic susceptibility assay, all the <i>K. pneumoniae</i> strains were resistant to at least one other class of antibiotics, in addition to beta-lactams. Peptides <b>1B</b> and <b>C</b> showed activity on all test strains, but the lipidated analogue <b>C</b> expressed the greater antimicrobial properties, with MIC values ranging from 6.25 to 25 µM. Furthermore, the peptide <b>C</b> showed bactericidal activity at MIC values. The results clearly highlight the great potential of antimicrobial peptides both as a new treatment option for difficult-to-treat infections and as a new strategy of drug-resistance control.