The Effect of Vitamin D2 on the Susceptibility of Staphylococcus epidermidis to Amoxicillin

Biofilm associated infections caused by Staphylococcus epidermidis present a major challenge in the field of medicine due to their resistance to antibiotic treatment. The biofilms caused by this Gram positive bacteria are found on implanted devices such as catheters, prosthetic joints, and heart valves and make it difficult to treat infections (Lee & Anjum, 2023). Antibiotic adjuvants have become a growing interest over the years to treat and eliminate these biofilms. Antibiotic adjuvants are compounds that have little to none antimicrobial activity but when combined with an actual antibiotic, increase its effectiveness. Many forms of vitamin D have been looked at as potential antibiotic adjuvants, but vitamin D2 has not been significantly studied regarding its impact on biofilm formation (Youssef et al., 2023). Therefore, the purpose of the study was to determine the effect of vitamin D2 on the susceptibility of S. epidermidis to amoxicillin, an antibiotic. The disk diffusion method was utilized, in which increasing concentrations of vitamin D2 were combined with amoxicillin, and zones of inhibition were measured to assess antibiotic effectiveness. The results showed that increasing levels of vitamin D2 resulted in larger zones of inhibition, demonstrating a dosage-dependent relationship between amoxicillin activity and vitamin D2. The ANOVA analysis demonstrated that all the experimental groups were statistically significant with a p value < 0.001.