Title : Interactions of antimicrobial drugs and natural products: a solution or even more trouble concerning bacterial resistance?
Abstract:
Bacterial infectious diseases are each time more difficult to treat. The limited options of antimicrobial drugs and the multidrug resistance profile of pathogenic strains are the main explanations for this context. Several works have provided evidence of the antimicrobial potential of different plant extracts and phytomolecules such as polyphenols and alkaloids, suggesting that they can be explored isolated or combined to antimicrobial drugs to overcome bacterial resistance. However, effective combinations of phytomolecules and antimicrobials are poorly predictable, and require experimental evidence to be confirmed. A complex scenario, therefore, develops in this context: potentially bioactive compounds can be found not only in industrially-manufactured or artisanally prepared phytotherapics, but also in nutritional supplements, food, juices and teas. As food intake is generally more recurrent than medication intake, drug-herbal interactions (DHI) are expected to be more frequent than drug-drug interactions (DDI). Nevertheless, DHI are often ignored and are not as investigated as DDI. Regarding antimicrobial drugs, negative (antagonistic) DHI may lead to increased bacterial resistance, in spite of their potential antimicrobial activity. In this talk, recent works on DHI related to antimicrobial drugs will be discussed, considering synergistic and antagonistic interactions, as well as perspectives on pharmaceutical development of formulations.
What will audience learn from your presentation?
- Molecular aspects of bacterial resistance to antimicrobial drugs;
- Pharmacology of natural products concerning antimicrobial potential;
- Technical aspects of analytical methods using GC-MS and UPLC for natural products;
- DHI that may be explored to treat bacterial infectious diseases.
