Metabolites Potentiate Nitrofurans in Nongrowing Escherichia coli.

ABSTRACT: Nitrofurantoin (NIT) is a broad-spectrum bactericidal antibiotic used in the treatment of urinary tract infections. It is a prodrug that once activated by nitroreductases goes on to inhibit bacterial DNA, RNA, cell wall, and protein synthesis. Previous work has suggested that NIT retains considerable activity against nongrowing bacteria. Here, we have found that Escherichia coli grown to stationary phase in minimal or artificial urine medium is not susceptible to NIT. Supplementation with glucose under conditions where cells remained nongrowing (other essential nutrients were absent) sensitized cultures to NIT. We conceptualized NIT sensitivity as a multi-input AND gate and lack of susceptibility as an insufficiency in one or more of those inputs. The inputs considered were an activ

SUBMITTER: Aedo SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8092534 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature