Invitro activities of panduratin A against clinical Staphylococcus strains

In vitro antistaphylococcal activities of panduratin A, a natural chalcone compound isolated from Kaempfe-ria pandurata Roxb, were compared to those of commonly used antimicrobials against clinical staphylococcal isolates. Panduratin A had a MIC at which 90 % of bacteria were inhibited of 1 g/ml for clinical staphylococcal isolates and generally was more potent than commonly used antimicrobials. Staphylococci are frequently refractory to many new and commonly used antimicrobial agents and have become a prob-lem in recent years (8, 12, 17). Methicillin (meticillin)-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections have emerged as a worldwide problem, and clinical strains of MRSA exhibit re-duced susceptibility to antimicrobial agents (18). Moreover, coagulase-negative staphylococci are well established due to nosocomial bacteremia and indwelling medical device-associ-ated infection, showing increased multidrug resistance (1, 14). Thus, the identification of novel agents effective in inhibiting these strains has gained renewed urgency (7). In addition