Cross-resistance between triclosan and antibiotics in Pseudomonas aeruginosa is mediated by multidrug efflux pumps: exposure of a susceptible mutant strain to triclosan selects nfxB mutants overexpressing MexCD-OprJ.
by
Chuanchuen R, Beinlich K, Hoang TT, Becher A, Karkhoff-Schweizer RR, Schweizer HP.
Department of Microbiology,
Colorado State University,
Fort Collins, Colorado 80523-1677, USA.
Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2001 Feb;45(2):428-32.

ABSTRACT

Triclosan is an antiseptic frequently added to items as diverse as soaps, lotions, toothpaste, and many commonly used household fabrics and plastics. Although wild-type Pseudomonas aeruginosa expresses the triclosan target enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase, it is triclosan resistant due to expression of the MexAB-OprM efflux system. Exposure of a susceptible Delta(mexAB-oprM) strain to triclosan selected multidrug-resistant bacteria at high frequencies. These bacteria hyperexpressed the MexCD-OprJ efflux system due to mutations in its regulatory gene, nfxB. The MICs of several drugs for these mutants were increased up to 500-fold, including the MIC of ciprofloxacin, which was increased 94-fold. Whereas the MexEF-OprN efflux system also participated in triclosan efflux, this antimicrobial was not a substrate for MexXY-OprM.


Triclosan Research