Abstract:
Objective: To evaluate the
in vitro combined effects of clarithromycin(CLA) with 4 antifungal agents against
Talaromyces marneffei(TM), and to compare the impacts of different interpretive criteria on the combined susceptibility results, thereby providing a theoretical basis for the clinical treatment of co-infection caused by TM and nontuberculous mycobacteria(NTM).
Methods: The checkerboard microdilution method was adopted to perform the combination susceptibility testing of CLA with amphotericin B(AmB), fluconazole(FLC), itraconazole(ITC) and voriconazole(VOC) against 20 TM strains(19 clinical isolates+1 reference strain). For azoles, 2 interpretive criteria were respectively adopted: half-maximal inhibitory concentration(IC
50) and complete-inhibitory concentration(IC
100), and the combined effects were assessed using fractional inhibitory concentration index(FICI).
Results: The combination of AmB and CLA showed the highest synergy rate(18/20, 90%), and the geometric mean of IC
100 of AmB decreased from 2.297 μg/mL to 0.536 μg/mL after the combination(
P<0.001). The combination of ITC and CLA showed consistent activity under both interpretive criteria, with synergy rates of 45%-65% and additive rates of 35%-55%. The synergistic effects of the FLC-CLA and VOC-CLA combinations were highly dependent on the interpretive criteria: indifferent interactions predominated at IC
50(100% and 85%, respectively), whereas additive interactions predominated at IC
100(85% and 75%, respectively). No antagonism was observed for any combination.
Conclusion: The combination of AmB and CLA exhibits the strongest synergistic effect, suggesting its potential as a preferred option for combined therapy in severe co-infections. The combination of ITC and CLA exhibits a stable synergistic effect, suggesting its potential for oral sequential therapy. The synergistic effects of the FLC-CLA and VOC-CLA combinations can only be observed at IC
100. The choice of interpretive criteria significantly affects the qualitative outcomes of azolecombination susceptibility testing.