In Vivo Activities of Ceftolozane, a New Cephalosporin, with and without Tazobactam against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacteriaceae, Including Strains with Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases, in the Thighs of Neutropenic Mice

Ceftolozane is a new cephalosporin with potent activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacteriaceae. A neutropenic murine thigh infection model was used to determine which pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic index and magnitude drives the efficacy of ceftolozane with Gram-negative bacilli, to compare the rates of in vivo killing of P. aeruginosa by ceftolozane and ceftazidime, and to determine the impact of different ratios of ceftolozane plus tazobactam on Enterobacteriaceae containing extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs). Neutropenic mice had 10(6.2-7.1) CFU/thigh when treated with ceftolozane for 24 h with (i) various doses (3.12 to 1,600 mg/kg) and dosage intervals (3, 6, 12, and 24 h) against two Enterobacteriaceae strains, (ii) 0.39 to 800 mg/kg every 6 h for four Enterobacteriaceae and four P. aeruginosa strains, and (iii) 400 or 800 mg/kg with 2:1. 4:1, and 8:1 ratios of tazobactam against five Enterobacteriaceae strains with ESBLs. The pharmacokinetics of ceftolozane at 25, 100, and 400 mg/kg were linear with peak/dose values of 1.0 to 1.4 and half-lives of 12 to 14 min. T>MIC was the primary index driving efficacy. For stasis (1 log kill), T>MIC was 26.3% +/- 2.1% (31.6% +/- 1.6%) for wild-type Enterobacteriaceae, 31.1% +/- 4.9% (34.8% +/- 4.4%) for Enterobacteriaceae with ESBLs, and 24.0% +/- 3.3% (31.5% +/- 3.9%) for P. aeruginosa. At 200 mg/kg every 3 h, the rate of in vivo killing of P. aeruginosa was faster with ceftolozane than with ceftazidime (-0.34 to -0.41 log(10) CFU/thigh/h versus -0.21 to -0.24 log(10) CFU/thigh/h). The 2:1 ratio of ceftolozane with tazobactam was the most potent combination studied. The T>MIC required for ceftolozane is less than with other cephalosporins and may be due to more rapid killing.