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Article

Are the Newer Carbapenems of Any Value against Tuberculosis

by
Ximena Gonzalo
and
Francis Drobniewski
*
Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London W12 0NN, UK
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Antibiotics 2022, 11(8), 1070; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081070
Submission received: 11 July 2022 / Revised: 30 July 2022 / Accepted: 5 August 2022 / Published: 7 August 2022
(This article belongs to the Section Antibiotic Therapy in Infectious Diseases)

Abstract

:
Our aim was to assess whether newer carbapenems with a better administration profile than meropenem (ertapenem, faropenem and tebipenem) were more effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis including M/XDRTB and determine if there was a synergistic/antagonistic effect with amoxicillin or clavulanate (inhibitor of beta-lactamases that MTB possesses) in vitro. Whilst meropenem is given three times a day intravenously, ertapenem, though given parenterally, is given once a day, faropenem and tebipenem are given orally. Eighty-two clinical drug-sensitive and -resistant MTB strains and a laboratory strain, H37Rv, were assessed by a microdilution methodology against ertapenem, faropenem, tebipenem and meropenem with and without amoxicillin or clavulanic acid. Ertapenem showed a limited activity. The addition of amoxicillin and clavulanate did not translate into significant improvements in susceptibility. Sixty-two isolates (75.6%) exhibited susceptibility to faropenem; the addition of amoxicillin and clavulanate further reduced the MIC in some isolates. Faropenem showed a limited activity (MIC of 8 mg/L or lower) in 21 strains completely resistant to meropenem (MIC of 16 mg/L or higher). Fifteen of the meropenem-resistant strains were susceptible to tebipenem. Carbapenems’ activity has been reported extensively. However, there remains uncertainty as to which of them is most active against TB and what the testing methodology should be.

1. Introduction

Carbapenems were discovered to be active against non-tuberculous mycobacteria in the last decade of the 20th century [1]. They inhibit the L,D-transpeptidases present in Mycobacterium spp. [2,3,4].
For the treatment of tuberculosis (TB), however, the interest in these drugs grew later, with the advent of multidrug and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (M/XDRTB). Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) possesses a class C beta-lactamase that can inactivate carbapenems. Since the early 2000s, reports of good in vitro and in vivo results have emerged [5,6,7]. Of all the drugs in this class, meropenem proved to be the most stable against the chromosomally encoded blaC beta-lactamase [8]. The addition of clavulanic acid improves carbapenem activity probably by inhibiting beta-lactamase [3,9,10,11,12,13].
Co-amoxiclav has been included in the WHO Group C (former group V) antituberculous drugs for many years, despite the paucity of data to support its use [14,15,16]. Clavulanate (the beta-lactamase inhibitor in co-amoxiclav) can be administered orally. However, it is not available in the UK alone, but only in combination with antibiotics such as amoxicillin [13].
Concerns about pharmacological antagonism between amoxicillin and meropenem by means of completion for the binding sites have arisen. However, the addition of amoxicillin to meropenem and clavulanate shows a synergistic effect against M. tuberculosis strains at concentrations easily achievable in vivo [17].
Meropenem is given three times a day intravenously, and its use could drive emergence of resistance in the gut microbiota. Ertapenem, even though still requiring parenteral administration, is given once a day, while faropenem and tebipenem are given orally [13,18,19,20].
Faropenem is stable against the blaC enzyme present in MTB, which means that the drug is hydrolysed even if there is resistance to clavulanic acid [13,21]. When tested in an ex vivo model of TB using a laboratory strains H37Rv (but no clinical strains), faropenem manages to successfully kill MTB [22].
In one study, tebipenem showed a good activity in vitro against clinical isolates, including M/XDRTB [23].
Ertapenem has also been shown to be active in vitro. However, testing is challenging, since it degrades quickly at 37 °C [24,25].
The aim of this work was to assess the activity of carbapenems with a better administration profile against clinical strains of M. tuberculosis, including M/XDRTB.

2. Results

Ninety-three clinical strains and a laboratory strain, H37Rv, were assessed by a microdilution methodology against ertapenem, faropenem, tebipenem and meropenem and their combination with amoxicillin and clavulanic acid using a microtiter plate format. A picture of a plate ready to be read can be found in Supplementary Figure S1.
A readable susceptibility profile was obtained for 82 strains (87.2%). Eleven strains failed to grow in microtiter plates. A full set of results for drug-susceptible and drug-resistant strains can be found in Table 1 and Table 2, with the MIC50 and MIC90 values given in Table 3 and Table 4 for each group.
The MIC50 values for the faropenem−clavulanate combination with and without amoxicillin were 2 mg/L, while the MIC90 values were 32 mg/L. Sixty-two isolates showed an MIC of 8 mg/L or less, falling into the susceptibility category, and 62 isolates were susceptible to faropenem, clavulanate and amoxicillin.
The ertapenem−clavulanate combination showed an MIC50 of 32 mg/L that did not change with the addition of amoxicillin. The corresponding MIC90 was 64 mg/L. Twelve strains had an MIC of 4 mg/L or less, which is the cut-off based on PK/PD models for the current dose of 1 g once per day. If the dose is changed to 2 g twice a day, the cut-off is 16 mg/L in which case 34 strains is considered susceptible. With the addition of amoxicillin, 14 out of 82 strains show an MIC of 4 mg/L or less, and 34 strains presented an MIC of 16 mg/L or less.
The meropenem−clavulanate combination showed an MIC50 of 8 mg/L and decreased to 4 mg/L after amoxicillin was added. Its MIC90 was 64 mg/L. Forty-six strains had an MIC of 8 mg/L or less, which is the susceptibility cut-off for Gram-negative microorganisms. With the addition of amoxicillin, 57 strains were susceptible having MICs of 8 mg/L or less. A decrease in at least two-fold dilution is expected when synergy is present. A rise in MIC suggests antagonism, and no changes or reduction in less than two-fold dilution indicate an additive effect [17,26,27].
The tebipenem−clavulanate combination had an MIC50 of 2 mg/L that decreased to 1 mg/L after the addition of amoxicillin and its MIC90 was 64 mg/L. Sixty strains showed an MIC of 8 mg/L or less, which would be considered susceptible. This number grew to 64 when adding amoxicillin.
Of the 52 susceptible strains tested, 40 strains had a faropenem MIC of 8 mg/L or less. The addition of clavulanate increased the number to 41. For ertapenem, only H37RV had an MIC of 0.5 mg/L or less [28]. Twenty-eight isolates were susceptible to meropenem, and 35 isolates were susceptible to the meropenem−clavulanate combination. Forty strains had a tebipenem MIC of 8 mg/L or less. This number did not change with the addition of clavulanate.
Of the 27 MDRTB isolates (nine were XDRTB), 19 had a faropenem MIC of 8 mg/L or less, and the number increased to 21 after the addition of clavulanate. Three were susceptible to ertapenem using the EUCAST cut-off of 0.5 mg/L. Fifteen isolates were susceptible to meropenem, and 19 isolates were susceptible to the meropenem−clavulanate combination. Seventeen isolates had a tebipenem MIC of 8 mg/L or less, and the number was increased to 21 after the addition of clavulanate.

3. Discussion

Ertapenem showed limited activity with only a few isolates, demonstrating susceptibility. This lack of activity is potentially an artefact associated with the reported phenomenon of ertapenem degradation in vitro [25]. Given the slow replication of M. tuberculosis, this leads to a challenging situation in testing where the antibiotic possibly degrades before killing or inhibiting bacterial growth. Some authors have suggested the daily addition of antibiotics to the experimental setup [29], but this will hamper the evaluation of the dose tested and increase the risk of contamination as well as posing a repeated risk for the operator when working with M/XDRTB. The addition of the amoxicillin−clavulanate combination did not translate into significant improvements in susceptibility. Although ertapenem has been reported as useful in the treatment of TB, as part of combination therapy, its role remains unclear [7,24]. Previous animal studies reported an ertapenem MIC of 4 mg/L [7,13].
Faropenem is thermo-stable at 37 °C [30]. Sixty-two out of 82 isolates (75.6%) exhibited different degrees of susceptibility to faropenem, and the addition of amoxicillin and clavulanate further reduced the MIC in some isolates. This is in line with previous experiments with other carbapenems, in particular meropenem [17]. The current breakpoint for Gram-positive bacteria is 2 mg/L, which matches the MIC50 found in this study. The MIC for Gram-negative microorganisms is higher, i.e., 8 mg/L, which means that these antibiotic concentrations can be achieved in vivo [13,28].
Faropenem did show some limited activity (MIC of 8 mg/L or lower) in 21 strains completely resistant to meropenem (MIC of 16 mg/L or higher). Fifteen of the meropenem-resistant strains were susceptible to tebipenem. However, of the 52 isolates fully susceptible to first-line antituberculous drugs, 20 were resistant to the faropenem used, while 12 were resistant to tebipenem, indicating a role more confined to drug-resistant isolates. An additional hurdle for their clinical use is associated with the fact that routine susceptibility testing is not readily available.
Further information regarding the concentration of faropenem in blood and lung tissue is needed, as the MICs found in the current study were close to the cut-off value and there needs to be more certainty if those levels can be achieved with current dosing regimens [13].
In the last 20 years, carbapenems’ activity against mycobacteria has been reported extensively [13,31]. However, there is still a lack of certainty regarding which of them is the best against TB and what the best testing methodology is, as multiple methods with conflicting results have been reported [13,17,32,33]. In an animal model, in which Swiss mice were infected with MTB H37Rv, by comparing the results of the control group, the combination of a carbapenem and clavulanic acid improved survival in the treated group, but it did not stop the growth of the microorganism overall. The size of the spleen, the number of lung lesions and the colony-forming units in the lung were not different in treated and control mice [7]. In a more physiological hypoxic model emulating granuloma conditions, carbapenems have limited activity [34].
Mechanisms of resistance to carbapenems in mycobacteria remain poorly understood. MTB has efflux pumps that can potentially be at least partially implicated in resistance [35]. Changes in sulfolipids can increase impermeability, as has been observed for M. bovis BCG with ampicillin [36]. Additionally, a study in 2017 found that a mutation in a non-annotated protein confers resistance to the carbapenems meropenem and biapenem [37]. Lucic et al. [38,39] showed that resistance to faropenem is complex. Faropenem is orally active with a C-2 tetrahydrofuran (THF) ring, which is resistant to hydrolysis by some β-lactamases. They reported reactions of faropenem with carbapenem-hydrolysing β-lactamases, focusing on the class A serine β-lactamase KPC-2, the metallo β-lactamases (MBLs) VIM-2 (a subclass B1 MBL) and L1 (a B3 MBL). Kinetic studies showed that faropenem is a substrate for all three β-lactamases. Crystallographic analyses on faropenem-derived complexes revealed the opening of the β-lactam ring with the formation of an imine with KPC-2, VIM-2 and L1. In the cases of the KPC-2 and VIM-2 structures, the THF ring is opened to give an alkene, but with L1 the THF ring remains intact. Solution state studies, employing NMR, were performed on L1, KPC-2, VIM-2, VIM-1, NDM-1, OXA-23, OXA-10 and OXA-48. The solution results revealed, in all cases, the formation of imine products in which the THF ring is opened; the formation of a THF ring-closed imine product was only observed with VIM-1 and VIM-2. An enamine product with a closed THF ring was also observed in all cases at varying levels. Lucic et al. pointed out the potential for different outcomes in the reactions of penems with MBLs and SBLs and also demonstrated how crystal structures of β-lactamase substrate/inhibitor complexes do not always reflect reaction outcomes in solutions [38,39].
Clinical outcome evidence remains difficult to interpret, as therapy of MDR and XDR-TB involves combinations of several drugs. Currently, no well-powered control trial exists [31,40,41]. Due to the lack of clarity about effectiveness, higher costs associated with their use, the administration route and the potential emergence of resistance amongst gut microbiota, these drugs should be considered companion drugs rather than effective anti-TB agents [9,11,13,42,43,44,45].
Carbapenems showed modest in vitro activity using microdilution methods. The susceptibility is strain-specific and cannot be assumed a priori as it is not associated with M/XDRTB status.
Carbapenems cannot be considered active against M. tuberculosis, if the current EUCAST cut-off for Gram-positive microorganisms is followed. However, using PK/PD criteria, there are some activities and limited roles for meropenem, faropenem and tebipenem. The killing efficacy of the compounds tested was dose-dependent. Tebipenem was most efficient in killing MTB. The addition of clavulanate (2.5 mg/L) did not increase the killing efficacy of the antibiotics, except for meropenem.
More research is needed to clarify the roles of these antimicrobials in the treatment of M. tuberculosis. The recent introduction of novel inhibitors/carbapenems, such as ralebactam and varbobactam, could be explored.

4. Materials and Methods

Ninety-three clinical strains and a laboratory strain, H37Rv (Table 5), were tested against ertapenem, faropenem, tebipenem and meropenem and their combinations with amoxicillin and clavulanic acid using microdilution.
From frozen aliquots, the seed lot was generated by culturing it on Middlebrook 7H11 media. The plates were read twice a week. When growth was detected (more than 50 colony-forming units), colonies from Middlebrook 7H11 plates were suspended in 7H9 supplemented with OADC. Glass beads were added. The tube was shaken, until bacterial clumps were broken. The suspension was matched to a McFarland of 1 and left to rest for 20 min. One hundred microlitres were transferred to 11 mL of 7H9 supplemented with OADC and vortex for 20 s. Fifty microlitres of bacterial suspension were inoculated in each well (A, B, C, D, E and F) of a microtiter plate. The final volume per well was 0.1 mL.
The plate was sealed, double-bagged, placed in a plastic container and incubated at 37 °C and in a 5% CO2 atmosphere, and readings were performed weekly until 28 days. Plates were deemed ready for interpretation, when there was visible growth in the growth control wells (H11 and H12). Final concentrations of antibiotics per well can be found in Table 6. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC), which was the first well with no visible growth, was recorded for each strain.

5. Conclusions

Carbapenems show limited activity when using PK/PD criteria. The killing efficacy of the compounds tested was dose-dependent. Tebipenem was most efficient in killing MTB.

Supplementary Materials

The following supporting information can be downloaded at: https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/antibiotics11081070/s1. Figure S1: Microtiter plate ready to be read.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, X.G. and F.D.; formal analysis, X.G. and F.D.; funding acquisition, F.D.; investigation, X.G. and F.D.; methodology, X.G. and F.D.; project administration, X.G.; resources, F.D.; supervision, F.D.; validation, X.G. and F.D.; writing—original draft, X.G.; writing—review & editing, X.G. and F.D. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

F.D. was partially funded by the Imperial BRC.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

All relevant data are included in the manuscript.

Acknowledgments

Agnieszka Broda is thanked for providing assistance with initial TB cultures.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest. F.D. was partially funded by the Imperial BRC. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

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Table 1. MICs of carbapenems (mg/L) in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for fully susceptible MTB strains. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Table 1. MICs of carbapenems (mg/L) in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for fully susceptible MTB strains. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Strain NumberFaro + ClavFaro + Clav +
AMX
Erta + ClavErta + Clav +
AMX
MEM + ClavMEM + Clav +
AMX
TEBI + ClavTEBI + Clav +
AMX
RT120004160.1250.5220.1250.1250.1250.125
RT1200055510.06840.1250.1250.1250.125
M08.1430980.068160.1250.1250.1250.125
M08.1436211168220.1250.125
RT1200034610.5416220.1250.125
RT1200033320.584420.1250.125
M08.144100.5188840.1250.125
M08.144128232323240.1250.125
M08.143990.060.0632320.580.1250.125
M08.14417216432480.1250.125
M08.1441310.56464880.1250.125
M08.143921132321680.1250.125
M08.144260.060.0688420.50.125
M08.144150.250.061682410.125
M08.143972164643280.50.25
H112080012221616810.1250.5
H11190003916163232810.1250.5
H37Rv0.060.060.516410.1250.5
RT120005530.50.2588410.50.5
RT120005660.1250.125162220.50.5
RT120005520.50.56464220.50.5
RT120004090.2512321620.50.5
H111900041816646440.520.5
M08.14408416464168160.5
3.01320.25440.50.50.51
RT120003380.060.06160.54211
RT120003260.06116160.5411
RT1200032420.58168811
M08.1442288646464811
M08.14400286464323211
2.29210.58160.50.521
RT1200032841884412
5.1771643232321642
M08.1436132464648852
M08.14432216432321644
M08.14440446464323244
M08.1443716166464643244
M08.143634816168484
H1108604614432328884
M08.14411486464646488
M08.144230.060.06646482116
M08.1447188646464641632
M08.1440222646464643232
M08.1435388646464643264
RT120003473232646464646464
RT120004433232646464646464
M08.144073232646464646464
M08.144143232646464646464
M08.144253232646464646464
M08.144343232646464646464
M08.144393232646464646464
M08.143523232646464646464
Table 2. MIC50, MIC90 and modal MIC values of carbapenems in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for fully susceptible MTB strains. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Table 2. MIC50, MIC90 and modal MIC values of carbapenems in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for fully susceptible MTB strains. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Faro + ClavFaro + Clav +
AMX
Erta + ClavErta + Clav +
AMX
MEM + ClavMEM + Clav +
AMX
TEBI + ClavTEBI + Clav +
AMX
MIC502132328811
MIC903232646464646464
Modal MIC21646464640.1250.125
Table 3. MICs of carbapenems (mg/L) in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for strains with resistance to one or more first- and second-line drugs. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Table 3. MICs of carbapenems (mg/L) in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for strains with resistance to one or more first- and second-line drugs. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Strain NumberFaro + ClavFaro + Clav +
AMX
Erta + ClavErta + Clav +
AMX
MEM + ClavMEM + Clav +
AMX
TEBI + ClavTEBI + Clav +
AMX
H1115000100.060.060.510.1250.1250.1250.125
M08.143040.060.0640.12520.50.1250.125
H1120800180.060.061664820.1250.125
M08.143370.250.0621880.1250.125
M08.143772232321680.1250.125
M08.143500.060.1250.1250.12520.1250.250.125
M08.143650.250.50.5110.250.250.25
H1119800104216161140.25
M08.1430322168410.50.5
M08.143541216168410.5
M08.1431014321616821
M08.144931616323220.581
H11104002788646410.25161
H111880072323264642282
H1116200218864648482
11.368443232328162
H11186001123481144
M08.143580.060.0632648244
H111740353323264648444
H11214003310.50.1250.125163244
H111540004886464328324
M08.1454332323286464324
H1118400030.250.061644488
H11162000220.0632328488
H1121600331181616161616
M08.14306168646416161616
M08.143661616323232323232
M08.1448688323264323232
H112990114168323216166464
M08.143613232323264646464
Table 4. MIC50, MIC90 and modal MIC values of carbapenems in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for strains with resistance to one or more first- and second-line drugs. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Table 4. MIC50, MIC90 and modal MIC values of carbapenems in association with clavulanic acid alone as well as clavulanic acid and amoxicillin for strains with resistance to one or more first- and second-line drugs. Clavulanic acid was used at a fixed concentration of 2.5 mg/L, and amoxicillin was used at a fixed concentration of 2 mg/L. Faro, faropenem; Clav, clavulanic acid; AMX, amoxicillin; Erta, ertapenem; MEM, meropenem; TEBI, tebipenem.
Faro + ClavFaro + Clav +
AMX
Erta + ClavErta + Clav +
AMX
MEM + ClavMEM + Clav +
AMX
TEBI + ClavTEBI + Clav +
AMX
MIC5022.532328462
MIC901616646432323216
Modal MIC0.060.063264880.1250.125
Table 5. Strains tested and their susceptibility profiles. S, fully susceptible; RIF, rifampicin-resistant; MDR, multi-drug resistant; POLYR, poly-resistant; XDR, extensively drug-resistant.
Table 5. Strains tested and their susceptibility profiles. S, fully susceptible; RIF, rifampicin-resistant; MDR, multi-drug resistant; POLYR, poly-resistant; XDR, extensively drug-resistant.
Strain
Number
Phenotypical
Resistance Profile
Strain
Number
Phenotypical
Resistance Profile
H37RvSM08.14303XDR
M08.14358MDRM08.14377MDR
H111500010MDRH112080012S
RT12000326SM08.14363S
RT12000338SRT12000328S
M08.14399S11.368MDR
M08.14423SM08.14408S
M08.14426SM08.14411S
M08.14304MDRM08.14440S
M08.14350XDRH110860461S
H112080018MDRH111980010POLYR
RT12000416SH111540004MDR
RT12000566SH111620021MDR
M08.14365POLYRM08.14412S
RT12000409SM08.14422S
M08.14415SH111040027MDR
M08.14337MDRM08.14486XDR
H111840003RIFM08.14471S
RT12000552SH111900041S
RT12000553SM08.14309S
M08.14410SM08.14353S
M08.14362SM08.14366XDR
RT12000346S05.177S
RT12000555SM08.14437S
02.292SH111900039S
M08.14392SH112990114MDR
M08.14413SM08.14493XDR
H112140033MDRM08.14306XDR
H112160033MDRM08.14361S
M08.14310MDRRT12000347S
M08.14354MDRRT12000443S
RT12000324SM08.14407S
RT12000333SH111740353MDR
H111620002MDRM08.14414S
03.013SM08.14425S
M08.14397SM08.14434S
H111860011MDRM08.14439S
M08.14400SH111880072XDR
M08.14402SM08.14361XDR
M08.14417SM08.14543XDR
M08.14432SM08.14352S
Table 6. Concentrations of ertapenem, faropenem, meropenem and tebipenem tested in combination with amoxicillin and clavulanate (in mg/L). F, faropenem; C, clavulanate; A, amoxicillin; M, meropenem; E, ertapenem; T, tebipenem.
Table 6. Concentrations of ertapenem, faropenem, meropenem and tebipenem tested in combination with amoxicillin and clavulanate (in mg/L). F, faropenem; C, clavulanate; A, amoxicillin; M, meropenem; E, ertapenem; T, tebipenem.
Concentration (mg/L)
F/C0.125 + 2.50.25 + 2.50.5 + 2.51 + 2.52 + 2.54 + 2.58 + 2.516 + 2.5
F/C/A0.125 + 2.5 + 20.25 + 2.5 + 20.5 + 2.5 + 21 + 2.5 + 22 + 2.5 + 24 + 2.5 + 28 + 2.5 + 216 + 2.5 + 2
E/C0.25 + 2.50.5 + 2.51 + 2.52 + 2.54 + 2.58 + 2.516 + 2.532 + 2.5
E/C/A0.25 + 2.5 + 20.5 + 2.5 + 21 + 2.5 + 22 + 2.5 + 24 + 2.5 + 28 + 2.5 + 216 + 2.5 + 232 + 2.5 + 2
M/C0.25 + 2.50.5 + 2.51 + 2.52 + 2.54 + 2.58 + 2.516 + 2.532 + 2.5
M/C/A0.25 + 2.5 + 20.5 + 2.5 + 21 + 2.5 + 22 + 2.5 + 24 + 2.5 + 28 + 2.5 + 216 + 2.5 + 232 + 2.5 + 2
T/C0.25 + 2.50.5 + 2.51 + 2.52 + 2.54 + 2.58 + 2.516 + 2.532 + 2.5
T/C/A0.25 + 2.5 + 20.5 + 2.5 + 21 + 2.5 + 22 + 2.5 + 24 + 2.5 + 28 + 2.5 + 216 + 2.5 + 232 + 2.5 + 2
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Gonzalo, X.; Drobniewski, F. Are the Newer Carbapenems of Any Value against Tuberculosis. Antibiotics 2022, 11, 1070. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081070

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Gonzalo X, Drobniewski F. Are the Newer Carbapenems of Any Value against Tuberculosis. Antibiotics. 2022; 11(8):1070. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081070

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Gonzalo, Ximena, and Francis Drobniewski. 2022. "Are the Newer Carbapenems of Any Value against Tuberculosis" Antibiotics 11, no. 8: 1070. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081070

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Gonzalo, X., & Drobniewski, F. (2022). Are the Newer Carbapenems of Any Value against Tuberculosis. Antibiotics, 11(8), 1070. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11081070

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