Roemerine Improves the Survival Rate of Septicemic BALB/c Mice by Increasing the Cell Membrane Permeability of Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most frequently occurring hospital- and community-associated pathogenic bacteria featuring high morbidity and mortality. The occurrence of methicillin-resistant S . aureus (MRSA) has increased persistently over the years. Therefore, developing novel anti-MRSA drugs to circumvent drug resistance of S . aureus is highly important. Roemerine, an aporphine alkaloid, has previously been reported to exhibit antibacterial activity. The present study aimed to investigate whether roemerine can maintain these activities against S . aureus in vivo and further explore the underlying mechanism. We found that roemerine is effective in vitro against four S . aureus strains as well as in vivo against MRSA insepticemic BALB/c mice. Furthermore, roemerine was found to increase cell membrane permeability in a concentration-dependent manner. These findings suggest that roemerine may be developed as a promising compound for treating S . aureus , especially methicillin-resistant strains of these bacteria.