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. 2022 Apr-Jun;14(2):132-136.
doi: 10.18502/ajmb.v14i2.8884.

The Inhibitory Effect of Thioridazine on adeB Efflux Pump Gene Expression in Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii Isolates Using Real Time PCR

Fereshteh Ahmadi  1 , Bahman Khalvati  2 , Saba Eslami  3 , Mehdi Mirzaii  4 , Narges Roustaei  5 , Farzad Mazloomirad  1 , Seyed Sajjad Khoramrooz  6   7
Affiliations

The Inhibitory Effect of Thioridazine on adeB Efflux Pump Gene Expression in Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii Isolates Using Real Time PCR

Fereshteh Ahmadi et al. Avicenna J Med Biotechnol. 2022 Apr-Jun.

Abstract

Background: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the antimicrobial effects of berberine and thioridazine, as well as their effect on the gene expression of the AdeABC efflux pump system in Multidrug-Resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) isolates.

Methods: This study was carried out in five MDR clinical isolates of A. baumannii and a sample of standard strain (A. baumannii PTCC1797). The effect of Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and the Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) of berberine, thioridazine, and ciprofloxacin alone and their combination on A. baumannii was evaluated by broth microdilution method. Also, their effect on the expression of adeB efflux pump gene was evaluated using real time PCR method.

Results: The MIC of thioridazine, berberine, ciprofloxacin+thioridazine, ciprofloxacin+ berberine, thioridazine+berberine, and ciprofloxacin+thioridazine+berberine on MDR A. baumannii isolates was 64, 256, 128, 256, 128, and 128 μg/ml, respectively. The results showed that treatment of strains with thioridazine alone and in combination with berberine and ciprofloxacin significantly (p<0.05) decreased the expression of adeB efflux pump gene.

Conclusion: Due to the inhibitory effects of thioridazine on bacterial isolates and adeB efflux pump gene, this compound can be used as a potential antimicrobial agent against MDR A. baumannii.

Keywords: Acinetobacter baumannii; Ciprofloxacin; Gene expression; Real-time polymerase chain reaction; Thioridazine.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The adeB gene expression of A. baumanii in different treatment groups; treatment with thioridazine, ciprofloxacin+ thioridazine, and thioridazine+berberine significantly decreased adeB gene expression in clinical and standard strains of A. baumanii (Cip: Ciprofloxacin, Ber: Berberine, Thio: Thioredazin).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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