Short communication: N-Acetylcysteine-mediated modulation of antibiotic susceptibility of bovine mastitis pathogens

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on antibiotic susceptibility of bovine mastitis pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Escherichia coli, and Streptococcus agalactiae. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were tested by the agar-based E-test method. The presence of 10 mM NAC reduced the MIC of penicillin and ampicillin but enhanced the MIC of erythromycin and ciprofloxacin for all of the strains. In addition, NAC-mediated modulation of MIC of kanamycin, tetracycline, and vancomycin was diverse, depending on the target bacterial pathogen and antibiotic being used. The results suggest that NAC is an important modulator of antibiotic activity against the major bovine mastitis pathogens.