Subinhibitory concentrations of farrerol reduce α-toxin expression in Staphylococcus aureus

• Published in: FEMS microbiology letters Vol. 315; no. 2; pp. 129 - 133
• Main Authors: Qiu, Jiazhang, Xiang, Hua, Hu, Chen, Wang, Qiang, Dong, Jing, Li, Hongen, Luo, Mingjing, Wang, Jianfeng, Deng, Xuming
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.02.2011; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Anti-Bacterial Agents - metabolism; Antibacterial activity; Bacterial Toxins - biosynthesis; Blotting, Western; Chromones - metabolism; Drug resistance; farrerol; Gene Expression - drug effects; Gene Expression Profiling; Hemolysin Proteins - biosynthesis; Hemolysis - drug effects; Humans; Methicillin; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Microbiology; Pathogens; Penicillin; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA-directed DNA polymerase; Secretion; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - drug effects; Staphylococcus aureus - isolation & purification; subinhibitory concentrations; Toxins; α-Toxin; farrerol; α-toxin; subinhibitory concentrations
• ISSN: 0378-1097; 1574-6968
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2010.02183.x

Abstract In this study, the antibacterial activity of farrerol against Staphylococcus aureus was determined. The minimum inhibitory concentrations capable of inhibiting 35 S. aureus strains ranged from 4 to 16 μg mL−1. A haemolysis assay, Western blot and real-time reverse transcriptase-PCR assay were performed to identify the influence of subinhibitory concentrations of farrerol on the secretion of α-toxin by S. aureus. The results show that farrerol significantly decreased, in a dose-dependent manner, the production of α-toxin by both methicillin-sensitive S. aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus.