Alternative ways to prevent and treat infectious diseases are needed. Previously, we identified a fungal peptide, NZX, that was comparable to rifampicin in lowering M. tuberculosis load in a murine tuberculosis (TB) infection model. Here we assessed the potential synergy between this cationic host defence peptide (CHDP) and the current TB drugs and analysed its pharmacokinetics. We found additive effect of this peptide with isoniazid and ethambutol and confirmed these results with ethambutol in a murine TB-model. In vivo, the peptide remained stable in circulation and preserved lung structure better than ethambutol alone. Antibiotic resistance studies did not induce mutants with reduced susceptibility to the peptide. We further observed that this peptide was effective against nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), such as M. avium and M. abscessus, and several Gram-positive bacteria, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. In conclusion, the presented data supports a role for this CHDP in the treatment of drug resistant organisms.
Open access funding provided by Lund University. NK, IGM and BR thank the UK Medical Research Council for support in the MRC Centre for Molecular Bacteriology and Infection, Imperial College London. The research was funded by the Swedish Heart–Lung Foundation (20200378), Alfred Österlunds Foundation, Royal Physiographic Society of Lund, Swedish Research Council and European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013) under grant agreement no 604182, FORMAMP-Innovative Nanoformulation of Antimicrobial Peptides to Treat Bacterial Infectious Diseases