Nutritional Insight
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • SERVICES
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • INSIGHTS
  • CONTACT
Featured Posts
  • New Diet and Nutrition Survey Data in the UK – Latest Insights.
  • Nutritional Insight – 2020 Roundup
  • Webinar Wisdoms
  • Choline, Neurological Development and Brain Function: A  Focus on the First 1000 Days

  • Is there Scope for a Novel Mycelium Category of Proteins alongside Animals and Plants?

  • Is there a Role for Immunonutrition in the Over 65s?

  • COVID-19 and Why the Aged Should be Swiftly reminded to take their Vitamin D.
  • Genome-Edited Foods: Are they Coming to our Supermarkets Soon?
  • Green and Blue Water Footprints: What Are They & How Do They Relate to Food?
  • Stress and Micronutrient Concentrations: Do They Impact Each Other?
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • SERVICES
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • INSIGHTS
  • CONTACT
Followers
Subscribe
Nutritional Insight
Nutritional Insight
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • SERVICES
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • INSIGHTS
  • CONTACT
  • All
  • Uncategorized

Can Vitamins Help Antibiotics Combat Superbugs: A Potential Synergistic Antimicrobial Effect

  • Posted on March 21, 2019March 21, 2019
over blurred pills background. Concept of medicine, drug addiction and science. 3d rendering mock up
Total
0
Shares
0
0

What is Antibiotic Resistance?

Antibiotic resistance is when bacteria develops the ability to resist the effects of antibiotics that could once successfully treat that bacteria. Antibiotic resistance is a subset of antimicrobial resistance, which is when a microorganism including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites develops the ability to resist the effects of medication that could once successfully treat the microorganism.

What are Superbugs?

Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance to antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals, antimalarials or anthelmintics can be termed ‘superbugs’. This includes bacterial infections that are resistant to the treatment of antibiotics. As a result of the superbug, medications once successful in their treatment become ineffective and the infection persists resulting in an increased risk of spreading the superbug to others.

Multidrug-resistant superbugs, including Acinetobacter baumannii and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), are a challenge for medical professionals and it is reported that nearly one million people die every year from bacterial infections that cannot be treated with common antibiotics. What makes this all the more serious is that as of today, we do not have any other alternative to antibiotics in the treatment of bacterial infections.

Acinetobacter baumannii

A. baumannii is a Gram-negative bacillus which appears to exhibit extensive resistance to most first-line antibiotics. It is an opportunistic bacterial pathogen mainly associated with hospital-acquired infections and also combat troops returning from conflict zones.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a Gram-positive coccus which is a major pathogen both within hospitals and in the community. Methicillin is a β-lactam antibiotic most often prescribed to treat S. aureus. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus isolates are often resistant to other classes of antibiotics making treatment options restricted.

Why do Multidrug Resistant Superbugs Develop?

Unfortunately, it is the way we have been using antibiotics that has helped to create the development of new drug-resistant superbugs.

Antibiotics are one of the most commonly prescribed drugs, and they are also administered to livestock to prevent disease and also to enhance the animals’ growth. However, many antibiotics prescribed to both people and animals are not necessary and it is this overuse and misuse of antibiotics that is helping to create drug-resistant bacteria.

When antibiotics are overused and misused bacteria that are able to survive the drug will replicate and grow quickly resulting in this drug-resistant strain of the bacteria spreading and thriving. Antibiotics are thus becoming less effective and will eventually stop working completely against certain disease-causing bacteria.

Can Vitamins Help Antibiotics?

A study recently published in the Synergyy aimed to investigate the potential synergistic activity of vitamins with antibiotics against resistant bacterial strains. The synergistic effects between antibiotics and stock solutions of vitamins were evaluated. The vitamins studied in combination with the antibiotics were vitamin B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (methylcobalamin), C (ascorbic acid), A (retinol), D (cholecalciferol), E (α-tocopherol) and K (menadione).

The results demonstrated that vitamins K and E had good synergistic activity with piperacillin/tazobactam, imipenem and doripenem against A. baumannii, whilst vitamins B1, B2 and B12 showed remarkable synergistic activity with linezolid against MRSA. Vitamin B1 was further shown to have better synergism with oxacillin, tetracycline, rifampicin and linezolid against MRSA. The fat-soluble vitamins E and K showed good synergism against Gram-negative A. baumannii, whilst the water-soluble vitamins B1, B2 and B12 were effective against MRSA but not against A. baumannii.

  • Vitamins E and K showed effective synergistic activity against Acinetobacter baumannii.
  • Vitamin B2 showed most effective synergistic activity against MRSA.
  • Vitamin K showed remarkable synergistic activity against A. baumannii but next to no synergism against MRSA.

Conclusions

This study has shown that antibiotic therapy against highly resistant bacteria may be successful if the antibiotics are used in combination with vitamins. As such, this synergistic action of vitamins with antibiotics may be used as a tool to treat multidrug-resistant superbugs. Further research is required at a molecular level and to investigate the mechanism of interaction of vitamins with antibiotics and with bacteria.

References

Shahzad S. et al. (2018) Evaluation of synergistic antimicrobial effect of vitamins (A, B1, B2, B6, B12, C, D, E and K) with antibiotics against resistant bacterial strains. J Glob Antimicrob Resist. Jun;13:231-236

Total
0
Shares
Tweet 0
Share 0
Related Topics
  • Antibiotic resistance
  • Synergy
  • Vitamins
Nutritional Insight

Previous Article
  • All
  • Brexit
  • Nutrition Exit
  • Regulations
  • Uncategorized

Nutrition EU Exit Regulations: Response from the Food Manufacturing and Nutrition Industry

  • Posted on March 6, 2019March 6, 2019
View Post
Next Article
  • All
  • Uncategorized

Chrono-Nutrition: What is it and Does it Affect Cardiac Health?

  • Posted on March 21, 2019March 21, 2019
View Post
You May Also Like
View Post
  • All

Webinar Wisdoms

  • Posted on September 24, 2020September 24, 2020
View Post
  • All

COVID-19 and Why the Aged Should be Swiftly reminded to take their Vitamin D.

  • Posted on March 20, 2020
View Post
  • All

Genome-Edited Foods: Are they Coming to our Supermarkets Soon?

  • Posted on February 3, 2020
View Post
  • All

Green and Blue Water Footprints: What Are They & How Do They Relate to Food?

  • Posted on November 4, 2019November 4, 2019
View Post
  • All

Stress and Micronutrient Concentrations: Do They Impact Each Other?

  • Posted on November 4, 2019November 4, 2019
View Post
  • All

Does the Nutrition Education of Physicians Need Advancing?

  • Posted on September 27, 2019September 27, 2019
View Post
  • All

Palm Oil: Should it Be Given the Same Attention as Single Use Plastics?

  • Posted on September 27, 2019September 27, 2019
View Post
  • All

Folic Acid Fortification: Assessing the Folate Status of Women After 20 Years of Fortification in the US

  • Posted on September 27, 2019September 27, 2019
Categories
  • 2020
  • 2021
  • about
  • All
  • Allergy
  • Before Pregnancy
  • Brain Health
  • Brexit
  • Calories
  • Cardiovascular Disease
  • Children
  • Children's Health
  • choline
  • Clean Labelling
  • Conception
  • Depression
  • Diabetes
  • Dietary Patterns
  • Drug Production
  • Eggs
  • Environutrition
  • Evidence-base
  • Fertility
  • Folic Acid
  • food and nutrition trends
  • Food Processing
  • Future Directions
  • Growing Up
  • Guidelines
  • Health
  • health trends
  • Marketing
  • Medical Diet
  • Microbiota
  • Micronutrients
  • Mid-Life
  • Mycoprotein
  • Novel Methods
  • Nutrition
  • Nutrition Exit
  • Nutrition Science
  • nutrition trends
  • nutritional insight
  • Obesity
  • Omega
  • Palm Oil
  • PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
  • Planetary Health
  • Probiotics
  • Protein Distribution
  • Protein Quality
  • Protein Shift
  • Puddings
  • Regulations
  • Research
  • Sugar
  • Supplements
  • Surveillance
  • Sustainable Eating
  • Sweet cherries
  • Tea
  • The Fast 800
  • Ultra Processing
  • Uncategorized
  • Vertical Farming
Featured Posts
  • Webinar Wisdoms
  • Choline, Neurological Development and Brain Function: A  Focus on the First 1000 Days

  • Is there Scope for a Novel Mycelium Category of Proteins alongside Animals and Plants?

  • Is there a Role for Immunonutrition in the Over 65s?

  • COVID-19 and Why the Aged Should be Swiftly reminded to take their Vitamin D.
Subscription Form
Keep Up to Date
Design By
SEVENTEEN
Frequently Searched
ADHD Almonds Antibiotic resistance Assessment Brexit Cardiac Health Children Choline Chrono-Nutrition Chronotype COVID-19 Depression Drug production Eggs Evidence-base Folic Acid Future of Nutrition Future Trends Growing Up Guidelines Health Health Science Information Era Microbiota micronutrients Minerals Novel methods Nutritional Profiling Nutrition and Health Claims Nutrition Exit Omega Orthorexia Polyphenols Precision Nutrition Protein Distribution Protein Quality Ratios Red Meat Registered Nutritionists Regulations Supplements Synergy Vertical Farming Vitamin D Vitamins
Nutritional Insight
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • SERVICES
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • INSIGHTS
  • CONTACT

Input your search keywords and press Enter.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.