Abstract

Human brucellosis remains a common zoonotic disease worldwide; it has been estimated to cause 500,000 new cases annually. In Saudi Arabia, brucellosis is endemic in different parts of the country due to consumption of unpasteurized milk. In this study, we investigated in vitro activity of tigecycline (TIG) against Brucella spp. isolated at Microbiology Laboratory, King AbdulAziz Medical City over the last 15 years. A total of 704 Brucella species isolates tested against TIG using E-test and MIC were measured. Of the 704 Brucella strain sub cultured, there were 444 isolates (63.07%) with an MIC equal or below 0.125 μg/ml, and the remaining 260 (36.93%) has an MIC between (0.190-2.0 μg/ml). The results of this in vitro study suggest that tigecycline has a promising future to be used as a therapeutic alternative for brucellosis. These observations need to be supported with clinical trials. This is the first study that analyzes a large number of Brucella isolates in our region.

Key words: Tigecycline, Brucella, Saudi Arabia.