Repurposing drugs for treatment of Mycobacterium abscessus: a view to a kill

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (5) ◽  
pp. 1212-1217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tawanda Gumbo ◽  
Kayle Cirrincione ◽  
Shashikant Srivastava

Abstract Background The current treatment regimens recommended for Mycobacterium abscessus subspecies abscessus (Mab) pulmonary disease are not effective. We identified 16 drugs with potential to build new regimens, translating to 560 possible three-drug combination regimens. Objectives To determine MICs and efficacy of drugs from different antibiotic classes for treatment against Mab, in order to winnow down the potential drugs for combination therapy to tractable numbers, for future use in hollow-fibre studies. Methods The MICs of levofloxacin, minocycline, meropenem, imipenem, tedizolid, bedaquiline, azithromycin, clarithromycin, amikacin, vancomycin, delafloxacin, tebipenem/avibactam and omadacycline were determined for 20 Mab isolates. In addition, concentration–response studies with tedizolid, bedaquiline, clarithromycin, amikacin, tebipenem/avibactam, cefdinir, faropenem, omadacycline and daunorubicin were performed and data were fitted to the inhibitory sigmoid Emax model. Efficacy was defined as maximal kill, expressed as cfu/mL kill below day 0 burden. Results The lowest MICs among the 13 antibiotics were of bedaquiline, tebipenem/avibactam and omadacycline. The antibiotics that killed Mab below the day 0 burden were the anticancer agent daunorubicin (3.36 log10 cfu/mL), cefdinir (1.85 log10 cfu/mL), faropenem (2.48 log10 cfu/mL) and tebipenem/avibactam (1.71 log10 cfu/mL kill). The EC50 values of these drugs were 11.67, 9.52, 48.2 and 0.33 mg/L, respectively, below peak concentrations of these drugs. Conclusions The low MICs and efficacy at clinically achievable concentrations mean that tebipenem/avibactam, daunorubicin, omadacycline and bedaquiline give a view of components of a three-drug regimen likely to effectively kill Mab. We propose pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic studies to identify such a regimen and the doses to be combined.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Lee ◽  
Nicole Ammerman ◽  
Anusha Agarwal ◽  
Maram Naji ◽  
Si-Yang Li ◽  
...  

AbstractCurrent treatment options for lung disease caused by Mycobacterium abscessus complex infections have limited effectiveness. To maximize the use of existing antibacterials and to help inform regimen design for treatment, we assessed the in vitro bactericidal activity of single drugs against actively multiplying and net non-replicating M. abscessus populations in nutrient-rich and nutrient starvation conditions, respectively. As single drugs, bedaquiline and rifabutin exerted bactericidal activity only against nutrient-starved and actively growing M. abscessus, respectively. However, when combined, both bedaquiline and rifabutin were able to specifically contribute bactericidal activity at relatively low, clinically relevant concentrations against both replicating and non-replicating bacterial populations. The addition of a third drug, amikacin, further enhanced the bactericidal activity of the bedaquiline-rifabutin combination against nutrient-starved M. abscessus. Overall, these in vitro data suggest that bedaquiline-rifabutin may be a potent backbone combination to support novel treatment regimens for M. abscessus infections. This rich dataset of differential time-and concentration-dependent activity of drugs, alone and together, against M. abscessus also highlights several issues affecting interpretation and translation of in vitro findings.


2015 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 1097-1105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz E. Ferro ◽  
Joseph Meletiadis ◽  
Melanie Wattenberg ◽  
Arjan de Jong ◽  
Dick van Soolingen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTMultidrug therapy is a standard practice when treating infections by nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), but few treatment options exist. We conducted this study to define the drug-drug interaction between clofazimine and both amikacin and clarithromycin and its contribution to NTM treatment.Mycobacterium abscessusandMycobacterium aviumtype strains were used. Time-kill assays for clofazimine alone and combined with amikacin or clarithromycin were performed at concentrations of 0.25× to 2× MIC. Pharmacodynamic interactions were assessed by response surface model of Bliss independence (RSBI) and isobolographic analysis of Loewe additivity (ISLA), calculating the percentage of statistically significant Bliss interactions and interaction indices (I), respectively. Monte Carlo simulations with predicted human lung concentrations were used to calculate target attainment rates for combination and monotherapy regimens. Clofazimine alone was bacteriostatic for both NTM. Clofazimine-amikacin was synergistic againstM. abscessus(I = 0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.29 to 0.55) andM. avium(I = 0.027; 95% CI, 0.007 to 0.048). Based on RSBI analysis, synergistic interactions of 28.4 to 29.0% and 23.2 to 56.7% were observed at 1× to 2× MIC and 0.25× to 2× MIC forM. abscessusandM. avium, respectively. Clofazimine-clarithromycin was also synergistic againstM. abscessus(I = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.35 to 0.72) andM. avium(I = 0.16; 95% CI, 0.04 to 0.35), RSBI analysis showed 23.5% and 23.3 to 53.3% at 2× MIC and 0.25× to 0.5× MIC forM. abscessusandM. avium, respectively. Clofazimine prevented the regrowth observed with amikacin or clarithromycin alone. Target attainment rates of combination regimens were >60% higher than those of monotherapy regimens forM. abscessusandM. avium. The combination of clofazimine with amikacin or clarithromycin was synergisticin vitro. This suggests a potential role for clofazimine in treatment regimens that warrants further evaluation.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olumide Martins ◽  
Nicole Ammerman ◽  
Jin Lee ◽  
Amit Kaushik ◽  
Kelly E Dooley ◽  
...  

Mycobacterium abscessus lung disease is difficult to treat due to intrinsic drug resistance and the persistence of drug-tolerant bacteria. Currently, the standard of care is a multi-drug regimen with at least 3 active drugs, preferably including a β-lactam (imipenem or cefoxitin). These regimens are lengthy, toxic, and have limited efficacy. The search for more efficacious regimens led us to evaluate bedaquiline, a diarylquinoline licensed for treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. We performed in vitro time-kill experiments to evaluate the activity of bedaquiline alone and in combination with the first-line drug imipenem against M. abscessus under various conditions. Against actively growing bacteria, bedaquiline was largely bacteriostatic and antagonized the bactericidal activity of imipenem. Contrarily, against nutrient-starved persisters, bedaquiline was bactericidal, while imipenem was not, and bedaquiline drove the activity of the combination. In an intracellular infection model, bedaquiline and imipenem had additive bactericidal effects. Correlations between ATP levels and the bactericidal activity of imipenem and its antagonism by bedaquiline were observed. Interestingly, the presence of Tween 80 in the media affected the activity of both drugs, enhancing the activity of imipenem and reducing that of bedaquiline. Overall, these results show that bedaquiline and imipenem interact differently depending on culture conditions. Previously reported antagonistic effects of bedaquiline on imipenem were limited to conditions with actively multiplying bacteria and/or the presence of Tween 80, whereas the combination was additive or indifferent against nutrient-starved and intracellular M. abscessus, where promising bactericidal activity of the combination suggests it may have a role in future treatment regimens.


2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jotam G. Pasipanodya ◽  
Deborah Ogbonna ◽  
Beatriz E. Ferro ◽  
Gesham Magombedze ◽  
Shashikant Srivastava ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT In pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic models of pulmonary Mycobacterium abscessus complex, the recommended macrolide-containing combination therapy has poor kill rates. However, clinical outcomes are unknown. We searched the literature for studies published between 1990 and 2017 that reported microbial outcomes in patients treated for pulmonary M. abscessus disease. A good outcome was defined as sustained sputum culture conversion (SSCC) without relapse. Random effects models were used to pool studies and estimate proportions of patients with good outcomes. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed. Sensitivity analyses and metaregression were used to assess the robustness of findings. In 19 studies of 1,533 patients, combination therapy was administered to 508 patients with M. abscessus subsp. abscessus, 204 with M. abscessus subsp. massiliense, and 301 with M. abscessus with no subspecies specified. Macrolide-containing regimens achieved SSCC in only 77/233 (34%) new M. abscessus subsp. abscessus patients versus 117/141 (54%) M. abscessus subsp. massiliense patients (OR, 0.108 [95% CI, 0.066 to 0.181]). In refractory disease, SSCC was achieved in 20% (95% CI, 7 to 36%) of patients, which was not significantly different across subspecies. The estimated recurrent rates per month were 1.835% (range, 1.667 to 3.196%) for M. abscessus subsp. abscessus versus 0.683% (range, 0.229 to 1.136%) for M. abscessus subsp. massiliense (OR, 6.189 [95% CI, 2.896 to 13.650]). The proportion of patients with good outcomes was 52/223 (23%) with M. abscessus subsp. abscessus versus 118/141 (84%) with M. abscessus subsp. massiliense disease (OR, 0.059 [95% CI, 0.034 to 0.101]). M. abscessus subsp. abscessus pulmonary disease outcomes with the currently recommended regimens are atrocious, with outcomes similar to those for extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis. Therapeutically, the concept of nontuberculous mycobacteria is misguided. There is an urgent need to craft entirely new treatment regimens.


2010 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 124-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaobin Shang ◽  
Crystal A. Shanley ◽  
Megan L. Caraway ◽  
Eileen A. Orme ◽  
Marcela Henao-Tamayo ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe experimental compound TMC207 is showing promise against infections caused byMycobacterium tuberculosisboth in a variety of animal studies and in the field. In this study, we used the guinea pig model, a species that shows several similarities to human tuberculosis, including the hallmark of primary granuloma necrosis, to determine the efficacy of a combination regimen combining TMC207 with rifampin and pyrazinamide. This drug regimen rapidly reduced the bacterial load in the lungs to undetectable levels by 8 weeks of treatment. This reduction was associated with a substantial improvement in lung pathology, but despite this effect areas of residual necrosis still remained. In the draining lymph nodes, however, tissue damage was rapid and not significantly reversed by the drug treatment. Approximately 10 to 11 months after the treatment had ended, the animals began to trigger a Karnovsky scale indicating bacterial regrowth and potential relapse, an event confirmed by the new development of both pulmonary and extrapulmonary granulomatous lesions. Interestingly, a similar rate of relapse was also seen in animals receiving 24 weeks of rifampin, pyrazinamide, and isoniazid standard chemotherapy. These data indicate that TMC207 could be a useful addition to current treatment regimens for tuberculosis.


Author(s):  
Jin Lee ◽  
Nicole Ammerman ◽  
Anusha Agarwal ◽  
Maram Naji ◽  
Si-Yang Li ◽  
...  

Current treatment options for lung disease caused by Mycobacterium abscessus complex infections have limited effectiveness. To maximize the use of existing antibacterials and to help inform regimen design for treatment, we assessed the in vitro bactericidal activity of single drugs against actively multiplying and net non-replicating M. abscessus populations in nutrient-rich and nutrient starvation conditions, respectively. As single drugs, bedaquiline and rifabutin exerted bactericidal activity only against nutrient-starved and actively growing M. abscessus, respectively. However, when combined, both bedaquiline and rifabutin were able to specifically contribute bactericidal activity at relatively low, clinically relevant concentrations against both replicating and non-replicating bacterial populations. The addition of a third drug, amikacin, further enhanced the bactericidal activity of the bedaquiline-rifabutin combination against nutrient-starved M. abscessus. Overall, these in vitro data suggest that bedaquiline-rifabutin may be a potent backbone combination to support novel treatment regimens for M. abscessus infections. This rich dataset of differential time- and concentration-dependent activity of drugs, alone and together, against M. abscessus also highlights several issues affecting interpretation and translation of in vitro findings.


Author(s):  
Olumide Martins ◽  
Jin Lee ◽  
Amit Kaushik ◽  
Nicole C. Ammerman ◽  
Kelly E. Dooley ◽  
...  

Mycobacterium abscessus lung disease is difficult to treat due to intrinsic drug resistance and the persistence of drug-tolerant bacteria. Currently, the standard of care is a multi-drug regimen with at least 3 active drugs, preferably including a β-lactam (imipenem or cefoxitin). These regimens are lengthy, toxic, and have limited efficacy. The search for more efficacious regimens led us to evaluate bedaquiline, a diarylquinoline licensed for treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. We performed in vitro time-kill experiments to evaluate the activity of bedaquiline alone and in combination with the first-line drug imipenem against M. abscessus under various conditions. Against actively growing bacteria, bedaquiline was largely bacteriostatic and antagonized the bactericidal activity of imipenem. Contrarily, against nutrient-starved persisters, bedaquiline was bactericidal, while imipenem was not, and bedaquiline drove the activity of the combination. In an intracellular infection model, bedaquiline and imipenem had additive bactericidal effects. Correlations between ATP levels and the bactericidal activity of imipenem and its antagonism by bedaquiline were observed. Interestingly, the presence of Tween 80 in the media affected the activity of both drugs, enhancing the activity of imipenem and reducing that of bedaquiline. Overall, these results show that bedaquiline and imipenem interact differently depending on culture conditions. Previously reported antagonistic effects of bedaquiline on imipenem were limited to conditions with actively multiplying bacteria and/or the presence of Tween 80, whereas the combination was additive or indifferent against nutrient-starved and intracellular M. abscessus , where promising bactericidal activity of the combination suggests it may have a role in future treatment regimens.


1997 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 1108-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
D E Nix ◽  
J H Wilton ◽  
J Hyatt ◽  
J Thomas ◽  
L C Strenkoski-Nix ◽  
...  

The pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of cefotaxime and ofloxacin and of their combination were examined in a three-period randomized crossover study involving 12 healthy adults. The PK of cefotaxime and ofloxacin were modeled. PD was assessed from the predicted concentrations in serum and serum untrafiltrate inhibitory titers for 10 test organisms. An inhibitory sigmoid Emax model based on the probability of bacterial growth was used, where Emax = 1 and EC50 is the concentration resulting in a 50% probability of growth. The total body clearance (CL(T)) and volume of distribution at steady state (V(SS)) for cefotaxime were 0.236 liters/kg/h and 0.207 liters/kg, respectively, for the monotherapy and 0.231 liters/kg/h and 0.208 liters/kg for the combination therapy. Ofloxacin exhibited PK parameters of 0.143 liters/kg/h for CL(T) and 1.20 liters/kg for V(SS) following the monotherapy and of 0.141 liters/kg/h for CL(T) and 1.16 liters/kg for V(SS) following combination therapy. For the combination therapy, an interaction term, theta, defined the type and relative extent of interaction. The range of observed theta values (-0.033 to 0.067) is consistent with an additive PD interaction according to standards similar to those used for the in vitro fractional inhibitory concentration index.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (567) ◽  
pp. eabb7656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan M. Bustamante ◽  
Fernando Sanchez-Valdez ◽  
Angel M. Padilla ◽  
Brooke White ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
...  

A major contributor to treatment failure in Chagas disease, caused by infection with the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, is that current treatment regimens do not address the drug insensitivity of transiently dormant T. cruzi amastigotes. Here, we demonstrated that use of a currently available drug in a modified treatment regimen of higher individual doses, given less frequently over an extended treatment period, could consistently extinguish T. cruzi infection in three mouse models of Chagas disease. Once per week administration of benznidazole at a dose 2.5 to 5 times the standard daily dose rapidly eliminated actively replicating parasites and ultimately eradicated the residual, transiently dormant parasite population in mice. This outcome was initially confirmed in “difficult to cure” mouse infection models using immunological, parasitological, and molecular biological approaches and ultimately corroborated by whole organ analysis of optically clarified tissues using light sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM). This tool was effective for monitoring pathogen load in intact organs, including detection of individual dormant parasites, and for assessing treatment outcomes. LSFM-based analysis also suggested that dormant amastigotes of T. cruzi may not be fully resistant to trypanocidal compounds such as benznidazole. Collectively, these studies provide important information on the phenomenon of dormancy in T. cruzi infection in mice, demonstrate methods to therapeutically override dormancy using a currently available drug, and provide methods to monitor alternative therapeutic approaches for this, and possibly other, low-density infectious agents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 307
Author(s):  
Evelyn J. Franco ◽  
Xun Tao ◽  
Kaley C. Hanrahan ◽  
Jieqiang Zhou ◽  
Jürgen B. Bulitta ◽  
...  

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an alphavirus associated with a broad tissue tropism for which no antivirals or vaccines are approved. This study evaluated the antiviral potential of favipiravir (FAV), interferon-alpha (IFN), and ribavirin (RBV) against CHIKV as mono- and combination-therapy in cell lines that are clinically relevant to human infection. Cells derived from human connective tissue (HT-1080), neurons (SK-N-MC), and skin (HFF-1) were infected with CHIKV and treated with different concentrations of FAV, IFN, or RBV. Viral supernatant was sampled daily and the burden was quantified by plaque assay on Vero cells. FAV and IFN were the most effective against CHIKV on various cell lines, suppressing the viral burden at clinically achievable concentrations; although the degree of antiviral activity was heavily influenced by cell type. RBV was not effective and demonstrated substantial toxicity, indicating that it is not a feasible candidate for CHIKV. The combination of FAV and IFN was then assessed on all cell lines. Combination therapy enhanced antiviral activity in HT-1080 and SK-N-MC cells, but not in HFF-1 cells. We developed a pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic model that described the viral burden and inhibitory antiviral effect. Simulations from this model predicted clinically relevant concentrations of FAV plus IFN completely suppressed CHIKV replication in HT-1080 cells, and considerably slowed down the rate of viral replication in SK-N-MC cells. The model predicted substantial inhibition of viral replication by clinical IFN regimens in HFF-1 cells. Our results highlight the antiviral potential of FAV and IFN combination regimens against CHIKV in clinically relevant cell types.


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