Tetrandrine (TET) is a bis-benzylisoquinoline alkaloid derived from the radix of Stephania tetrandra S. Moore. TET performs a wide spectrum of biological activities. The radix of S. tetrandrae has been used traditionally in Asia, including Korea, to treat congestive circulatory disorders and inflammatory diseases. The aim of this study was to examine the mechanism of antibacterial activity of tetrandrine against Staphylococcus aureus. The mechanism was investigated by studying the effects of TET in combination with detergent or membrane potential un-couplers. In addition, the direct involvement of peptidoglycan (PGN) was assessed in titration assays. TET activity against S. aureus was 125-250 μg/mL, and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the two reference strains was 250 μg/mL. The OD(600) of each suspension treated with a combination of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), tris(hydroxymethyl) aminomethane (TRIS), and Triton X-100 (TX) with TET (0.25×MIC) had been reduced from 43% to 96%. Additional structure-function studies on the antibacterial activity of TET in combination with other agents may lead to the discovery of more effective antibacterial agents.
-Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) along with other resistant bacteria have become a significant social and clinical problem. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop bioactive compounds from natural products as alternatives to the very few antibiotics that remain effective. Recently, the efflux mechanism has been identified as the main contributor to antibiotic resistance in bacteria. This study therefore aimed to evaluate tetrandrine (TET), an efflux pump inhibitor (EPI), as a potential antibiotic against MRSA. We investigated the antimicrobial activity of TET against 17 MRSA strains, of which 3 selected strains were studied in further detail using a time-kill assay. When these bacterial strains (1 × 10 6 colony-forming units (cfu)/ml) were incubated with TET in a time-kill assay, log-scale bactericidal activity was observed, which lasted for 24 hr. In addition, TET exhibits a synergistic effect when combined with the multi-drug resistance (MDR)-efflux pump substrate ethidium bromide (EtBr). Structure-function studies of the antibiotic activity of TET in combination with EtBr may lead to the discovery of more effective efflux pump inhibitors.
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