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Screening a Mushroom Extract Library for Activity Against Acinetobacter baumannii and Burkholderia cepacia and the Identification of a Compound with Anti-Burkholderia Activity

Summary

This research explored whether compounds from wild mushrooms could be used to develop new antibiotics against dangerous drug-resistant bacteria. Scientists tested extracts from 330 different mushrooms and found one compound (2-aminoquinoline) from the mushroom Leucopaxillus albissimus that showed some promise against resistant bacteria, though not strong enough for drug development. Impact on everyday life: – Highlights the ongoing challenge of finding new antibiotics to treat resistant infections – Demonstrates the potential of natural products from mushrooms as sources of new drugs – Shows how traditional medicines (mushrooms) can guide modern drug discovery – Emphasizes the need for continued research into new treatment options for antibiotic-resistant infections

Background

Acinetobacter baumannii and species within the Burkholderia cepacia complex (BCC) are significant opportunistic bacterial pathogens that exhibit high degrees of antibiotic resistance. Some clinical isolates are resistant to all currently available antimicrobial drugs, creating an urgent need for new treatment options. Mushrooms represent a potentially rich, untapped source of novel antimicrobial compounds.

Objective

To screen a library of crude extracts from 330 wild mushrooms for antibacterial activity against A. baumannii and Burkholderia cepacia to identify novel natural compounds that could be used to treat infections caused by these species.

Results

Only three crude extracts (0.9%) showed activity against both target bacteria. From these, an extract from Leucopaxillus albissimus yielded 2-aminoquinoline (2-AQ), which demonstrated modest activity against multiple BCC species (MIC = 8-64 μg/ml) and weak activity against A. baumannii (MIC = 128 μg/ml). The compound showed activity against multi-drug resistant clinical isolates but had relatively high MICs. Cytotoxicity testing showed an IC50 of 1.5 mg/ml against murine monocytes.

Conclusion

The limited number of active extracts suggests finding new drugs from mushrooms to treat Gram-negative bacterial infections may be difficult. While 2-AQ showed some promise against drug-resistant BCC strains, its relatively high MICs (8-128 μg/ml) and cytotoxicity profile indicate it is not suitable for further drug development in its current form.
  • Published in:Annals of Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobials,
  • Study Type:Laboratory Research,
  • Source: 10.1186/1476-0711-9-4
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