In vitro inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus by apitoxin and mellitin

DAILOFF G.; DUKART J.; NEDER V.; PALACIO, M. A.; CALVINHO L.; CHACANA P.

Estambul

Congreso; 45th Apimondia International Apicultural Congress 2017; 2017

Turkish Beekeeping Association

Apitoxin is the venom secreted by honey bees and it is composed by a complex mixture of proteins and peptides. It exhibits various properties, such as antimicrobial activity against gram positive bacteria. The extraction of the apitoxin does not represent significant reduction of the productivity of honey or other by-products of the hive. Melittin (a major component of apitoxin) is considered the main active fraction of apitoxin and it was demonstrated to have various biological activities related to its ability to interact with the cell membrane. To explore the feasibility to use apitoxin or melittin as alternatives to synthetic antimicrobials, the inhibitory activity of the whole venom and melittin against several strains of Staphyloccous aureus was assessed. Apitoxin was obtained from an apiary located in the province of Santa Fe, Argentina. Purified mellitin was obtained from a commercial supplier. Their ability to inhibit the growth of three S. aureus strains isolated from bovine mastitis cases and one S. aureus reference strain ATCC 29213 was evaluated by means of Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) assays in liquid medium. Differences were observed in the MICs required to inhibit the growth of isolates using apitoxin (from 15.62 µg /mL to 31.25 µg / mL)- or melittin (from 25 µg / ml to 50 µg / mL). In addition, comparative time-kill curve assays were performed that supported the MIC results. The results indicate that apitoxin and mellitin may represent a natural and effective alternative for the prevention or treatment of bovine mastitis caused by S. aureus.