Postantibiotic effect (PAE) is defined as the length of time that bacterial growth is suppressed following brief exposure to an antibiotic. In this study, the in vitro PAE, postantibiotic sub-MIC effect (PA SME) and sub-MIC effect (SME) of antibiotics on Treponema denticola ATCC 35405 were investigated. The PAE of doxycycline and metronidazole were 20.3 h and 25.0 h, respectively. The PA SMEs examined by addition of 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3X MICs during the postantibiotic phase of the bacteria for metronidazole were longer than those for doxycycline. In contrast, the SMEs for doxycycline were longer than those for metronidazole. The PA-SME and SME values increased as the concentration of antibiotics increased. The present study illustrates the existence of PAE, PA-SME and SME for several antibiotics against T. denticola, thereby extending the pharmacodynamic advantages of these antibiotics.

Postantibiotic effects (PAE) refer to suppression of the bacterial growth following limited periods of exposure to an antibiotic and subsequent to the removal of the antibiotic agent. Fusobacterium nucleatum and Porphyromonas gingivalis are Gram-negative anaerobic bacteria associated with several periodontal diseases. In this study, postantibiotic effects (PAE), postantibiotic sub-MIC effect (PA SME) and sub-MIC effect (SME) of antibiotics on F. nucleatum ATCC 25586 and P. gingivalis W50 were investigated. The PAE was induced by 10X the MIC of antibiotic and antibiotic was eliminated by washing. The PA SMEs were studied by addition of 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3X MICs during the postantibiotic phase of the bacteria, and the SMEs were studied by exposition of the bacteria to antibiotic at the sub-MICs only. Amoxicillin, doxycycline and tetracycline induced PAE for F. nucleatum ATCC 25586 and P. gingivalis W50. But metronidazole and penicillin induced PAE for only F. nucleatum ATCC 25586. Metronidazole and doxycycline induced PA SME and SME for both species of anaerobic bacteria used in this study. The PA SME values for both strains were substantially longer than the SME values. The present study showed the existence of PAE, PA SME and SME for various antibiotics against F. nucleatum ATCC 25586 and P. gingivalis W50.