Retrospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jun 16, 2023; 11(17): 4026-4034
Published online Jun 16, 2023. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v11.i17.4026
Anti-bacterial mechanism of baicalin-tobramycin combination on carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Li-Min Jin, Hui Shen, Xing-Ying Che, Ye Jin, Chun-Mei Yuan, Neng-Hua Zhang
Li-Min Jin, Hui Shen, Xing-Ying Che, Ye Jin, Chun-Mei Yuan, Neng-Hua Zhang, Laboratory Department, Jiaxing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jiaxing 314001, Zhejiang Province, China
Author contributions: Jin LM is mainly responsible for experimental design and writing articles; Shen H is mainly responsible for collecting data and samples; Chen XY conducted experimental operations and conducted statistical analysis of articles; Jin Y and Yuan CM are responsible for specimen selection and experimental operations; Zhang NH is responsible for experimental guidance and important revisions to the article, and all authors read and approved the final version.
Supported by Jiaxing Science and Technology Planning Project, No. 2019AY32006 and No. 2020AY30004.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the Jiaxing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine Institutional Review Board.
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There is no conflict of interest.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Neng-Hua Zhang, Doctor, Associate Chief Physician, Laboratory Department, Jiaxing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1501 Zhongshan East Road, Jiaxing 314001, Zhejiang Province, China. znhshzyxwx@163.com
Received: March 28, 2023
Peer-review started: March 28, 2023
First decision: April 11, 2023
Revised: April 21, 2023
Accepted: May 12, 2023
Article in press: May 12, 2023
Published online: June 16, 2023
Processing time: 75 Days and 22.4 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is an important cause of nosocomial infections, and contributes to high morbidity and mortality, especially in intensive care units. P. aeruginosa is considered a 'critical' category bacterial pathogen by the World Health Organization to encourage an urgent need for research and development of new antibiotics against its infections.

Research motivation

In this study, the anti-bacterial effect of baicalin combined with tobramycin on carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) infection was investigated, including the potential synergistic effect of the two drugs against this pathogen.

Research objectives

The objective of this research is to analyze the distribution of CRPA in a specific hospital over a period of time, and to investigate the effectiveness of baicalin combined with tobramycin therapy as a potential treatment method for CRPA infections. The study aims to explore the correlation between biofilm formation and the expression of drug-resistant and biofilm-related genes in CRPA, with the goal of identifying potential targets for effective treatment.

Research methods

The expression levels of drug-resistant genes and biofilm-related genes in CRPA that confer resistance to tobramycin, baicalin and tobramycin combined with baicalin were detected.

Research results

There was a correlation between biofilm formation and the expression of biofilm-related genes. In addition, VIM, IMP, OprD2, algD, pslA and lasR that confer biofilm production under different concentrations in CRPA were significantly correlated. The synergistic effect of baicalin combined with tobramycin was a significant down-regulation of VIM, IMP, algD, pslA and lasR.

Research conclusions

Baicalin combined with tobramycin therapy can be an effective treatment method for patients with CRPA infection.

Research perspectives

Future research can focus on further investigating the effectiveness of baicalin combined with tobramycin therapy in the treatment of CRPA infections, including exploring optimal dosage and administration methods. Additionally, further studies can explore the mechanisms underlying the down-regulation of drug-resistant and biofilm-related genes by baicalin and tobramycin, as well as potential side effects or limitations of this treatment method. Moreover, more research could be conducted to investigate other potential treatments for CRPA infections and to evaluate their clinical efficacy. Finally, efforts can be made to develop new approaches for preventing and controlling the spread of CRPA in hospitals and healthcare settings.