Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42288477›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

Molecular pharmacodynamics of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid for urinary tract infections caused by Escherichia coli.

Vineet Dubey, Christopher Darlow, Alessandro Gerada, Jennifer Unsworth, Esha Sheth, Nada Reza, Nicola Farrington, Sam Haldenby, Daniel Warren, Xuan Liu and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Vineet DubeyDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3793-1469
Christopher DarlowDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Alessandro GeradaDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6743-4271
Jennifer UnsworthDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Esha ShethDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Nada RezaDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Nicola FarringtonDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Sam HaldenbyCentre for Genomic Research, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Daniel WarrenCentre for Genomic Research, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Xuan LiuCentre for Genomic Research, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Alexander HowardDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4195-6821
William HopeDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom. hopew@liverpool.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6187-878X

Funding

Wellcome TrustWellcome Trust (Wellcome) 226691/Z/22/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (AMX-CLV) is a widely used oral β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combination against Escherichia coli. Clinical success is largely confined to urinary tract infections. The mechanistic basis for this site-specific efficacy remains unclear. Using a hollow-fibre infection model to replicate human plasma and urinary pharmacokinetics, we show that plasma-like exposures rapidly select for pre-existing resistant subpopulations; whereas, urinary exposures produce sustained bactericidal activity without resistance emergence. Genomic and transcriptomic analyses following plasma drug exposure reveal that treatment selectively enriches pre-existing resistant lineages already harbouring oxidative-stress-associated mutations that activate the SOS response and drive IS-mediated amplification of blaTEM-1, leading to β-lactamase hyperproduction and treatment failure. In contrast, the high urinary concentrations of clavulanic acid exert direct antibacterial activity, eradicating these subpopulations. Our findings demonstrate that local pharmacokinetic environments fundamentally shape evolutionary trajectories under β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor therapy, explaining the restricted efficacy of AMX-CLV and revealing a dynamic interplay between stress responses, genome plasticity, and drug partitioning that governs treatment outcome.

Indexed as

Amoxicillin-Potassium Clavulanate CombinationAnti-Bacterial AgentsEscherichia coliEscherichia coli InfectionsUrinary Tract Infectionsbeta-Lactamase Inhibitorsbeta-LactamasesDrug Resistance, BacterialHumansMicrobial Sensitivity TestsAmoxicillin-Potassium Clavulanate CombinationAnti-Bacterial Agentsbeta-Lactamase Inhibitorsbeta-Lactamases

Identifiers

PMID42288477
PMCPMC13408132

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.