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The bactericidal effect of 470-nm light and hyperbaric oxygen on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

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Abstract

It has been shown that, in vitro, hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) suppresses 28 % bacterial growth, while 470-nm blue light alone suppresses up to 92 % methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in one application in vitro. Therefore, we determined if combined 470-nm light (55 J/cm2) and HBO will yield 100 % bacterial suppression in experimental simulation of mild, moderate or severe MRSA infection. We cultured MRSA at 3 × 106, 5 × 106, 7 × 106, 8 × 106, or 12 × 106 CFU/ml and treated each concentration in four groups as follows: (1) control (no treatment) (2) photo-irradiation only, (3) photo-irradiation then HBO, (4) HBO only, and (5) HBO then photo-irradiation. Bacteria colonies were then quantified. The results showed that at each bacterial concentration, HBO alone was significantly less effective in suppressing MRSA than photo-irradiation or combined HBO and photo-irradiation (p < 0.0001). Similarly, at no bacterial concentration did combined HBO and 470-nm light treatment yield a statistically better result than 470-nm light alone (p > 0.05), neither did HBO treatment either before or after irradiation make a difference. Furthermore, at no bacterial concentration was 100 % MRSA suppression achieved. Indeed, the maximum bacterial suppression attained was in the mild infection model (3 × 106 CFU/ml), with blue light producing 97.3 ± 0.2 % suppression and HBO + 55 J/cm2 yielding 97.5 ± 2.5 % suppression. We conclude that (1) HBO and 470-nm light individually suppress MRSA growth; (2) 470-nm blue light is more effective in suppressing MRSA than HBO; and (3) HBO did not act synergistically to heighten the bactericidal effect of 470-nm light.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) program of the National Center for Research Resources and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (Grant: UL1RR031973), and by the College of Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, USA.

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The manuscript does not contain clinical studies or patient data.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2400 East Hartford Avenue, Milwaukee, WI, 53211, USA

    Violet Vakunseh Bumah, Daniela Santos Masson-Meyers & Chukuka Samuel Enwemeka

  2. Department of Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, WI, 53226, USA

    Harry Thomas Whelan, Brendan Quirk & Ellen Buchmann

  3. San Diego State University, 5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA, 92182, USA

    Chukuka Samuel Enwemeka

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  1. Violet Vakunseh Bumah
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Correspondence to Chukuka Samuel Enwemeka.

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Bumah, V.V., Whelan, H.T., Masson-Meyers, D.S. et al. The bactericidal effect of 470-nm light and hyperbaric oxygen on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Lasers Med Sci 30, 1153–1159 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10103-015-1722-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10103-015-1722-9

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