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Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, 05 1997, 1120-1123, Vol 41, No. 5
MH Nguyen, LK Najvar, CY Yu and JR Graybill
This study elucidates the role of combined fluconazole and flucytosine as
therapy for cryptococcosis in the murine model of meningitis. Three strains
of Cryptococcus neoformans for which the range of fluconazole MICs was
wide--2 microg/ml (susceptible strain), 8 microg/ml (moderately susceptible
strain), and 32 microg/ml (resistant strain)-- were used for infection. One
day postinfection, the mice were randomized into eight treatment groups:
placebo; flucytosine (40 mg/kg of body weight/day); fluconazole at 3
mg/kg/day (low dosage), 10 mg/kg/day (moderate dosage), or 20 mg/kg/day
(high dosage); and combined flucytosine and fluconazole at low, moderate,
or high doses of fluconazole. Three major findings were demonstrated: (i)
correlation between the MICs for the isolates and the in vivo effectiveness
of fluconazole as assessed by the reduction in cryptococcal brain burden,
(ii) a dose-response curve (a higher dose of fluconazole was significantly
more efficacious than a lower dose [P < 0.001]), and (iii) synergism
between fluconazole and flucytosine (therapy with a combination of
fluconazole and flucytosine was superior to therapy with either agent alone
[P < 0.01]).
Copyright © 1997 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Combination therapy with fluconazole and flucytosine in the murine model of cryptococcal meningitis
University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville VA Medical Center, USA. nguyen.med@shands.ufl.edu
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