Participation of Erythromycin and Carbomycin in Combined Antibiotic Action in vitro.

Abstract

In terms of their behavior in combinations with other antibiotics, as measured by bactericidal rate in vitro, erythromycin and carbomycin fall in a group with aureomycin, chloramphenicol and terramycin. Thus erythromycin or carbomycin in combination with group I drugs may result in synergism against certain micro-organisms which are relatively resistant to group I agents (penicillin, bacitracin, streptomycin) or may occasionally give antagonism when acting on microorganisms highly susceptible to group I drugs. With groups II drugs (aureomycin, chloramphenicol, terramycin), these 2 new drugs do not appear to be synergistic or antagonistic, but may be additive. Some uses of such drug combinations in laboratory and clinic are discussed.