Open AccessAntibiotic Susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae Strains from Europe and Africa
Author(s) -
Peter Piot,
E Van Dyck,
J Colaert,
JeanPaul Ursi,
Eugène Bosmans,
A Meheus
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.07
H-Index - 259
eISSN - 1070-6283
pISSN - 0066-4804
DOI - 10.1128/aac.15.4.535
Subject(s) - thiamphenicol , microbiology and biotechnology , neisseria gonorrhoeae , spectinomycin , ampicillin , cefotaxime , benzylpenicillin , cefoxitin , penicillin , cefuroxime , mezlocillin , cefamandole , cefaclor , tetracycline , cephalosporin , clavulanic acid , antimicrobial , biology , antibiotics , kanamycin , amoxicillin , chloramphenicol , bacteria , piperacillin , staphylococcus aureus , genetics , pseudomonas aeruginosa
The in vitro activities of 16 antimicrobial agents were tested by a plate dilution method against 268 unselected isolates ofNeisseria gonorrhoeae from Belgium, Rwanda, Swaziland, and Zaire. Fifteen β-lactamase-producing strains isolated in Europe from various origins were also tested. There were significant regional variations in antimicrobial agent susceptibility, even among the African isolates, with the Rwandan and Zairean strains being most resistant. Benzylpenicillin and ampicillin were equally active in all but the β-lactamase-producing strains. Among the cephalosporins, cefotaxime was by far the most active, followed by cefuroxime, cefamandole, cefoxitin, and cefaclor, in that order. All strains were susceptible to spectinomycin, thiamphenicol, kanamycin, and rifampin, with the exception of one highly rifampin-resistant isolate and a moderately thiamphenicol-resistant strain. Twenty-six percent of the isolates were highly resistant to streptomycin. Six percent of the gonococci had a minimal inhibitory concentration for tetracycline greater than 2 μg/ml. Clavulanic acid inhibited the β-lactamase activity of the gonococci tested and improved markedly the activities of ampicillin and amoxicillin against β-lactamase-producing strains.