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Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, July 1998, p. 1537-1541, Vol. 42, No. 7
0066-4804/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

In Vitro Susceptibilities of 27 Rickettsiae to 13 Antimicrobials

J. M. Rolain, M. Maurin, G. Vestris, and D. Raoult*

Unité des Rickettsies, Faculté de Médecine, Université de la Méditerranée, CNRS UPRES A 6020, 13385 Marseille Cedex 05, France

Received 12 November 1997/Returned for modification 10 February 1998/Accepted 19 April 1998

The MICs of 13 antibiotics (doxycycline, thiamphenicol, rifampin, amoxicillin, gentamicin, co-trimoxazole, ciprofloxacin, pefloxacin, ofloxacin, erythromycin, josamycin, clarithromycin, and pristinamycin) were determined for 27 available rickettsial species or strains. We used two in vitro cell culture methods described previously: the plaque assay and the microplaque colorimetric assay. Our results confirm the susceptibilities of rickettsiae to doxycycline, thiamphenicol, and fluoroquinolones. Beta-lactams, aminoglycosides, and co-trimoxazole were not active. Typhus group rickettsiae were susceptible to all macrolides tested, whereas the spotted fever group rickettsiae, R. bellii, and R. canada were more resistant, with josamycin, a safe alternative for the treatment of Mediterranean spotted fever, being the most effective compound. Strain Bar 29, R. massiliae, R. montana, R. aeschlimannii, and R. rhipicephali, which are members of the same phylogenetic subgroup, were more resistant to rifampin than the other rickettsiae tested. Heterogeneity in susceptibility to rifampin, which we report for the first time, may explain in vivo discrepancies in the effectiveness of this antibiotic for the treatment of rickettsial diseases. We hypothesize that rifampin resistance and erythromycin susceptibility may reflect a divergence during the evolution of rickettsiae.


* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Unité des Rickettsies, Faculté de Medecine, Université de la Mediterranée, CNRS UPRES A 6020 27 Boulevard Jean Moulin, 13385 Marseille Cedex 05, France. Phone: (33) 4 91 38 55 17. Fax: (33) 4 91 83 03 90. E-mail: Didier.Raoult{at}medecine.univ-mrs.fr.


Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, July 1998, p. 1537-1541, Vol. 42, No. 7
0066-4804/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.



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