International Journal of Molecular Sciences (Sep 2023)

Evaluating the Antibacterial and Antivirulence Activities of Floxuridine against <i>Streptococcus suis</i>

  • Jie Li,
  • Ning Han,
  • Yangyang Li,
  • Feifei Zhao,
  • Wenguang Xiong,
  • Zhenling Zeng

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241814211
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 24, no. 18
p. 14211

Abstract

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Streptococcus suis is an emerging zoonotic pathogen that can cause fatal diseases such as meningitis and sepsis in pigs and human beings. The overuse of antibiotics is leading to an increased level of resistance in S. suis, and novel antimicrobial agents or anti-virulence agents for the treatment of infections caused by S. suis are urgently needed. In the present study, we investigated the antibacterial activity, mode of action and anti-virulence effects of floxuridine against S. suis. Floxuridine showed excessive antibacterial activity against S. suis both in vivo and in vitro; 4 × MIC of floxuridine could kill S. suis within 8 h in a time–kill assay. Meanwhile, floxuridine disrupted the membrane structure and permeability of the cytoplasmic membrane. Molecular docking revealed that floxuridine and SLY can be directly bind to each other. Moreover, floxuridine effectively inhibited the hemolytic capacity and expression levels of the virulence-related genes of S. suis. Collectively, these results indicate that the FDA-approved anticancer drug floxuridine is a promising agent and a potential virulence inhibitor against S. suis.

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