@article{APS10430,
author = {Xiao-yang Chen and Fei Qian and Yao-yao Wang and Yan Liu and Yuan Sun and Wei-bin Zha and Kun Hao and Fang Zhou and Guang-ji Wang and Jing-wei Zhang},
title = {Ginsenoside 20(S)-Rh2 promotes cellular pharmacokinetics and intracellular antibacterial activity of levofloxacin against Staphylococcus aureus through drug efflux inhibition and subcellular stabilization},
journal = {Acta Pharmacologica Sinica},
volume = {42},
number = {11},
year = {2021},
keywords = {},
abstract = {Intracellular Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) often causes clinical failure and relapse after antibiotic treatment. We previously found that 20(S)-ginsenoside Rh2 [20(S)-Rh2] enhanced the therapeutic effect of quinolones in a mouse model of peritonitis, which we attributed to the increased concentrations of quinolones within bacteria. In this study, we investigated the enhancing effect of 20(S)-Rh2 on levofloxacin (LVF) from a perspective of intracellular bacteria. In S. aureus 25923-infected mice, coadministration of LVF (1.5 mg/kg, i.v.) and 20(S)-Rh2 (25, 50 mg/kg, i.g.) markedly increased the survival rate, and decreased intracellular bacteria counts accompanied by increased accumulation of LVF in peritoneal macrophages. In addition, 20(S)-Rh2 (1, 5, 10 μM) dose-dependently increased the uptake and accumulation of LVF in peritoneal macrophages from infected mice without drug treatment. In a model of S. aureus 25923-infected THP-1 macrophages, we showed that 20(S)-Rh2 (1, 5, 10 μM) dose-dependently enhanced the intracellular antibacterial activity of LVF. At the cellular level, 20(S)-Rh2 increased the intracellular accumulation of LVF by inhibiting P-gp and BCRP. PK–PD modeling revealed that 20(S)-Rh2 altered the properties of the cell but not LVF. At the subcellular level, 20(S)-Rh2 did not increase the distribution of LVF in lysosomes but exhibited a stronger sensitizing effect in acidic environments. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations showed that 20(S)-Rh2 improved the stability of the DNA gyrase–LVF complex in lysosome-like acidic conditions. In conclusion, 20(S)-Rh2 promotes the cellular pharmacokinetics and intracellular antibacterial activities of LVF against S. aureus through efflux transporter inhibition and subcellular stabilization, which is beneficial for infection treatment.},
issn = {1745-7254}, url = {http://www.chinaphar.com/article/view/10430}
}