In vitro antibacterial activity of the peptide PsVP-10 against antimicrobial-resistant Enterococcus faecalis isolated from clinical samples.

OBJECTIVE To analyse the antimicrobial activity of the peptide PsVP-10 against 67 resistant Enterococcus faecalis strains isolated from clinical samples. METHODS The qualitative disc diffusion method and MIC determinations were used. RESULTS The presence of several multidrug-resistant phenotypes of E. faecalis was demonstrated, in which there were high MICs to chloramphenicol, tetracycline, vancomycin, cefaloridine, ampicillin and gentamicin. In comparison, the peptide PsVP-10 showed lower MICs against all the multidrug-resistant and susceptible E. faecalis. CONCLUSIONS There is an urgent need for the development of novel antimicrobial agents against the highly resistant E. faecalis. The present study shows that the peptide PsVP-10 might make a contribution to the solution of this serious problem.