OBJECTIVES To assess the in vitro antibiotic susceptibility of Enterococcus faecalis in biofilms. METHODS E. faecalis isolates were from infections of prosthetic hip and knee joints. Minimal biofilm eradication concentrations (MBECs) for ampicillin, vancomycin, linezolid, ciprofloxacin and rifampicin, alone and in combinations, were determined. E. faecalis biofilms in microtitre plate wells o...

CYP3A4 is one of the major drug-metabolizing enzymes in human and is responsible for the metabolism of 60% of clinically used drugs. Many drugs are able to induce the expression of CYP3A4, which usually causes drug-drug interactions and adverse drug reactions. This study aims to explore the role of histone modifications in rifampicin-induced expression of CYP3A4 in LS174T cells. We found that t...

BACKGROUND Permeability glycoprotein (P-glycoprotein or P-gp) plays an important role in the intestinal absorption of the immunosuppressive agents: cyclosporine and tacrolimus. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to determine how the intestinal absorption of cyclosporine and tacrolimus is affected when they are used with P-gp activating or inhibiting agents. MATERIAL AND METHODS In in vitr...

BACKGROUND In the setting of a large endemic of Acinetobacter baumannii infections, treatment of those due to carbapenem-resistant strains, susceptible only to colistin, has become a major problem in our hospital during the past years. Successful results have been reported using colistin, but clinical experience with this antibiotic is limited. In our experimental studies using these strains in...

Pruritus in hepatic cholestasis has been suggested to be secondary to a high concentration of serum bile acids. Rifampicin, which inhibits the uptake of bile acids by hepatocytes, has been used to treat pruritus. To determine the efficacy of rifampicin as a treatment for refractory pruritus, the medical records of 33 children (median age 25 months, range 4-135; 19 boys) with chronic cholestasis...

The prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphyloccoccus aureus (MRSA) strains has presented a new challenge in antimicrobial medication. Linezolid is a new drug with potent activity on Gram-positive pathogens such as MRSA. The aim of the study was to investigate the in vitro activity of linezolid alone and in combination with imipenem, vancomycin or rifampicin to determine the most active thera...

'Flu' syndrome as a complication of intermittent weekly administration of rifampicin is well documented. The rare occurrence of 'flu' syndrome on once monthly rifampicin is reported in this paper.

Background: Brucellosis is an endemic zoonosis in Syria, affecting large numbers of animals. There are an increasing number of cases in humans. Brucella is a facultative intracellular pathogen, a small, non-motile, Gram-negative coccobacillus, which causes abortion in domestic animals and a febrile illness in humans. Methods: One hundred isolates collected from different Syrian regions were con...

Quinupristin/dalfopristin (RP59500) is a novel streptogramin and a semisynthetic derivative of pristinamycins IA and IIB. The following properties of RP59500 were investigated: (i) its in-vitro activity against 164 hospital isolates of Staphylococcus aureus, 101 of which were methicillin-resistant (MRSA); (ii) its killing effect against 24 MRSA and seven methicillin-susceptible (MSSA) isolates;...

Rifampicin (Rimactane(& (CIBA)) is a semi-synthetic antibiotic (3-(4-methyl-l-piperazinyl-iminomethyl)rifamycin SV), derived from the rifamycins, which are produced by Streptomyces mediterranei. Rifampicin differs from other rifamycins in that it is active when taken by mouth, has a wider spectrum of action, and is eliminated more slowly. It is active against Gram-positive bacteria, particularl...