Hydrogen sulfide production does not affect antibiotic resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Hydrogen sulfide (H ₂ S) has been proposed to protect bacteria from antibiotics, pointing to H ₂ S-producing enzymes as possible targets for the development of antibiotic adjuvants. Here, MIC assays performed with Pseudomonas aeruginosa mutants producing altered H ₂ S levels demonstrate that H ₂ S does not affect antibiotic resistance in this bacterium. Moreover, correlation analyses in a large collection of P. aeruginosa cystic fibrosis isolates argue against the protective role of H ₂ S from antibiotic activity during chronic lung infection.