In vivo efficacy of combination of colistin with fosfomycin or minocycline in a mouse model of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii pneumonia

Unfortunately, the options for treating multidrug-resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) infections are extremely limited. Recently, fosfomycin and minocycline were newly introduced as a treatment option for MDR A. baumannii infection. Therefore, we investigated the efficacy of the combination of colistin with fosfomycin and minocycline, respectively, as therapeutic options in MDR A. baumannii pneumonia. We examined a carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii isolated from clinical specimens at Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea. The effect of colistin with fosfomycin, and colistin with minocycline on the bacterial counts in lung tissue was investigated in a mouse model of pneumonia caused by MDR A. baumannii. In vivo, colistin with fosfomycin or minocycline significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the bacterial load in the lungs compared with the controls at 24 and 48 h. In the combination groups, the bacterial loads differed significantly (p < 0.05) from that with the more active antimicrobial alone. Moreover, the combination regimens of colistin with fosfomycin and colistin with minocycline showed bactericidal and synergistic effects compared with the more active antimicrobial alone at 24 and 48 h. This study demonstrated the synergistic effects of combination regimens of colistin with fosfomycin and minocycline, respectively, as therapeutic options in pneumonia caused by MDR A. baumannii.