Antimicrobial Activity of Different Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) Against Clinical Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Background: Antimicrobial research is being focused to look for more effective therapeutics against antibiotic-resistant infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). In this direction, antimicrobial peptides (AMP) appear as promising tool.

Objectives: This study evaluated the antimicrobial activity of different AMPs (Citropin 1.

In vitro activity of the protegrin IB-367 alone and in combination compared with conventional antifungal agents against dermatophytes.

The occurrence of resistance or side effects in patients receiving antifungal agents leads to failure in the treatment of mycosis. The aim of this experimental study was to investigate the in vitro effects of IB-367 alone and in combination with three standard antifungal drugs, fluconazole (FLU), itraconazole (ITRA) and terbinafine (TERB), against 20 clinical isolates of dermatophytes belonging to three species. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), minimal fungicidal concentrations (MFCs), synergy test, time-kill curves, fungal biomass (FB) and hyphal damage using 2,3-bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfenylamino carbonil)-2H-tetrazolium hydroxide assay (XTT) were performed to study the efficacy of IB-367.

Intestinal parasitosis: data analysis 2006-2011 in a teaching hospital of Ancona, Italy.

Intestinal parasites are a serious problem in developing countries, but should not be underestimated in industrialised countries either. Between January 2006 and December 2011, stool specimens and the scotch tests of 5323 Italian and non Italian patients (adults and children) attending the laboratory of our Infectious Diseases Clinic in a teaching Hospital at Ancona were analyzed specifically for intestinal parasites. The present study shows that, over a six-year period, of a total of 5323 patients 305 harboured at least one species of parasite (5.

An atypical, pigment-producing Metschnikowia strain from a leukaemia patient.

A yeast strain was isolated from the sputum sample of a leukaemia patient in the Spirito Santo Hospital of Pescara, Italy. The fungus produced a pigment that formed a reddish halo around colonies, and was identified and deposited as a Metschnikowia spp. (accession number IHEM 25107-GenBank accession number JQ921016) in the BCCM/IHEM collection of biomedical fungi and yeasts (Bruxelles, Belgium).

In vitro susceptibility of dermatophytes to conventional and alternative antifungal agents.

The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), the minimal fungicidal concentrations (MFCs), the fungal biomass (FB) and hyphal viability employing the dye 3-4,5 dimethyl- 2-thiazolyl- 2,5- diphenyl- 2H tetrazolium bromide (MTT) were used to compare the in vitro effects of fluconazole (FLU) with those of the N-terminal palmitoyl-lipidated peptide, Pal-Lys-Lys-NH(2) (PAL), and a tea tree oil component, gamma-Terpinene (TER), against several clinical isolates of Microsporum canis and Trichophyton rubrum. In general, FLU and PAL MICs were significantly lower than those observed with TER, while no differences in the three drugs were found in the MFCs. However, they were from two to 16-times higher than their respective MICs.

In vitro activity of the synthetic lipopeptide PAL-Lys-Lys-NH(2) alone and in combination with antifungal agents against clinical isolates of Cryptococcus neoformans.

The in vitro activity of the lipopeptide PAL-Lys-Lys-NH(2) (PAL), alone or combined with either fluconazole (FLU) or amphotericin B (AMB), was investigated against 14 Cryptococcus neoformans isolates. PAL MICs ranged from 1.0 to 4.

Effects of caspofungin against Candida guilliermondii and Candida parapsilosis.

The in vitro activity of caspofungin (CAS) was investigated against 28 yeast isolates belonging to Candida albicans (n = 5), Candida guilliermondii (n = 10), and Candida parapsilosis (n = 13). CAS MICs obtained by broth dilution and Etest methods clearly showed a rank order of susceptibility to the echinocandin compound with C. albicans > C.

Comparison of the fungicidal activities of caspofungin and amphotericin B against Candida glabrata.

We investigated the fungicidal activity of caspofungin (CAS) and amphotericin B (AMB) against 16 clinical isolates of Candida glabrata. The minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFCs) of CAS were similar to those of AMB, ranging from 2.0 to >8.

Caspofungin in combination with amphotericin B against Candida glabrata.

The effects of caspofungin combined with amphotericin B were investigated with Candida glabrata. Although in vitro experiments showed an indifferent interaction, the combination regimen was the only therapeutic approach yielding organ sterilization in a murine candidemia model.

Sequential therapy with caspofungin and fluconazole for Candida albicans infection.

A sequential therapy of caspofungin (CAS) and fluconazole (FLC) administration for treatment of Candida albicans infection was investigated. Treatment with CAS followed by FLC was as effective as CAS treatment given alone for the same duration. Our data suggest that switching from CAS to FLC is a potentially explorable therapeutic option for treatment of systemic candidiasis.

Antifungal susceptibility patterns of yeast isolates causing bloodstream infections.

A broth microdilution method following the NCCLS recommendations was used for testing fluconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole, 5-fluorocytosine and amphotericin B against 83 yeast isolates causing bloodstream infections in 59 patients hospitalized between January 1998 and June 2001 at the University Hospital of Bari, Italy. Isolates belonged to four species of Candida and three other yeast genera. Of the isolates, 97%, 95% and 100% were susceptible to fluconazole, itraconazole and posaconazole, respectively.

In vitro and in vivo anticryptococcal activities of a new pyrazolo-isothiazole derivative.

We investigated the activity of a pyrazolo-isothiazole derivative (G8) against Cryptococcus neoformans. A first screening test showed that G8 at 10 mg/L inhibited the growth of 14 of 15 clinical isolates tested. Killing experiments showed that fungicidal activity was achieved after 8 h of treatment with G8 at concentrations > or =10 mg/L.

Point prevalence, microbiology and fluconazole susceptibility patterns of yeast isolates colonizing the oral cavities of HIV-infected patients in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy.

We conducted a prospective study to address the prevalence and microbiological characteristics of yeast isolates colonizing the oral cavities of HIV-infected patients undergoing highly active antiretroviral therapy. Sixty-eight patients (67%) from a total of 102 were found to be colonized with yeasts. Sixty-five patients carried a single species (60 Candida albicans, three Candida glabrata and two Candida krusei) and three patients had mixed colonization of C.