In Vitro Activity of Rifabutin and Rifampin against Antibiotic-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumoniae

We recently reported that the antimicrobial activity of rifabutin against Acinetobacter baumannii is best modeled by the use of RPMI for in vitro susceptibility testing. Here, we define the effects of medium on the susceptibility and frequency of resistance emergence in a panel of A. baumannii, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. Only A. baumannii was hypersusceptible to rifabutin in vitro and in vivo using a Galleria mellonella infection model. In vitro, the frequency of resistance emergence was greater when the bacteria were selected on RPMI versus tryptic soy agar (TSA) or Mueller-Hinton II (MHII) agar plates. However, the frequency of resistance emergence was lower in vivo than in the RPMI in vitro condition. IMPORTANCE Rifabutin has been recently described as a potential adjunctive therapy for antibiotic-resistant A. baumannii infections due to hypersensitivity in iron-depleted media, which may more closely mimic an in vivo environment. Here, we report that this hyperactivity is specific for A. baumannii, rather than being a general effect for other pathogens.