Article

Antibiotics

Antibiotics (Antibacterials) are used to treat and prevent bacterial infections. Antibiotics can be bacteriostatic (prevents bacterial multiplication) or bactericidal (kill bacteria).

In 1928, Alexander Fleming returned to his lab in Scotland after a long vacation and checked his culture plates that he had left behind. Colonies of Staphylococcus bacteria developed on the surface of most plates. But one plate had been contaminated with a fungus, and the colonies of bacteria near the mold had disappeared. Fleming discovered that by mixing the same mold of fungus (now known to be Penicillium notatum) into flasks of bacteria, he could kill the bacteria.

In 1945, penicillin became the first mass-produced antibiotic that treated a wide variety of infections.

The first active antibiotic which was commercially available was Prontosil (first Sulfonamide) discovered by Gerhard Domagk in 1933, for which he was awarded Nobel Prize in 1939. New antibiotic development had peaked during 1960s and has dramatically fallen since then.

Antibiotics are classified into narrow spectrum antibiotics that work against few types of bacteria and broad spectrum antibiotics that attack many types of bacteria. Antibiotics can be classified in many ways.

Classes of antibiotics based on their mode of action:

1) Cell Wall Synthesis

→Beta-Lactams:

Penicillins
Cephalosporins
Carbapenams
Monobactams
Bacitracins
Vancomycin

→Cell Membrane:
Polymyxins
Daptomycin

2) Nucleic Acid Synthesis

→Folate Synthesis:

Sulfonamides
Trimethoprim

→DNA Gyrase:
Quinolones

→RNA Polymerase:
Rifampin

3) Protein Synthesis

→50S subunit

Macrolids
Clindamycin
Linezolid
Chloramphenicol
Streptogramins

→30S subunit

Tetracyclines
Aminoglycosides
Oxazolidinone

Choosing an antibiotic:

Choice of antibiotic is not always an easy task even if the bacteria is identified and their sensitivity to antibiotic is determined.
The effectiveness of treatment depend on variety of factors such as the amount of drug absorbed in body, how well it is absorbed and how quickly the body eliminates it. Drug selection also takes into account the side effects of the drug and cost of the drug.

Preventive antibiotics:

Antibiotics can not only treat infections but can be used prophylactically to prevent infections, for example, antibiotics taken before or during travel to foreign countries to prevent diarrhea as a preventive therapy; antibiotics administered to prevent infections before, during and after surgeries; people exposed to someone with meningitis infection also require preventive therapy etc.

Antibiotic resistance:

Today, one might not see the same results that penicillin had decades back. Bacteria, since then, have evolved resistance to penicillin and numerous antibiotics. Often, the bacteria begin producing enzymes that destroy the chemical structure of the drug before it can affect the bacteria. As a result, exposing today’s bacteria to the same Penicillium mold will have no effect on the bacteria, also depends on the strain.

Targeted bacteria can develop own defense against the drug if the drug is taken for longer period of time. As bacteria multiply, every generation develops resistance till it completely becomes immune to the particular antibiotic. Misuse of antibiotics increase the growth and spread of resistant bacteria. It is crucial to develop new antibiotics to control current and future infectious diseases caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Our brands under antibiotic category:

Oral:

Cefexy 100
Cefexy 200
Cefexy-CV
Cefexy-OZ
Gevoflox Tab
Ofnis 200
Ofnis-OZ
Nismentin-625
Cefunis-250
Cefunis-500
Doxinis-100
Doxinis-200
Doxinis-CV
Infulid

Dry Syrups:

Doxinis Dry Syrup
Nismentin Dry Syrup
Cefexy Dry Syrup

Injections:

Meronis
Nistreo
Tigly
Nismentin Inj
Pathoclin
Teicos
Simps-500
Glicef-1000
Glicef-S
Glicef-T
Glifest
Niskacin
Tazonis
Bactonis
Cefunis 0.75 Inj
Cefunis 1.5 Inj
Peronis
Glifest
Vanconis
Meroheal