Influence of clavulanic acid on the activity of amoxicillin against an experimental Streptococcus pneumoniae-Staphylococcus aureus mixed respiratory infection

Abstract

An experimental respiratory infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae was established in weanling rats by intrabronchial instillation. Treatment of this infection with amoxicillin rapidly eliminated the pneumococci from the lung tissue. A beta-lactamase-producing strain of Staphylococcus aureus, when inoculated in a similar manner, did not persist adequately in the lungs long enough to permit a reasonable assessment of the therapy, but staphylococcal survival was extended in the lungs of rats infected 24 h previously with S. pneumoniae. Amoxicillin therapy was relatively ineffective against the pneumococci in this polymicrobial infection and had no effect on the growth of S. aureus. In contrast, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid eliminated the pneumococci from the lung tissue and brought about a reduction in the numbers of staphylococci. The data illustrate the utility of this model for the study of polymicrobial lung infections and demonstrate the role of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid in the treatment of polymicrobial infections involving beta-lactamase-producing bacteria.