Penicillin

About: Penicillin is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 17916 publications have been published within this topic receiving 368480 citations. The topic is also known as: penicillin antibiotic & PCN.

Cross-linked aggregates of penicillin acylase: robust catalysts for the synthesis of β-lactam antibiotics

Abstract: A novel method for the immobilization of penicillin G acylase (penicillin amidohydrolase, EC 35111) is reported It involves the physical aggregation of the enzyme, followed by chemical cross-linking to form insoluble cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEAs) Compared with conventionally immobilized penicillin G acylases, these CLEAs possess a high specific activity as well as a high productivity and synthesis/hydrolysis (S/H) ratio in the synthesis of semi-synthetic antibiotics in aqueous media Moreover, they are active in a broad range of polar and apolar organic solvents

Antimicrobial Resistance with Streptococcus Pneumoniae in the United States

Abstract: Among antimicrobial agents that have consistently been efficacious in treating infections due to specific bacteria over extended periods of time, there are few better examples than Streptococcus pneumoniae and penicillin. Until recently in the United States (U.S.), this combination had remained nearly uniformly effective. The sole issue mitigating for or against use of penicillin (or ampicillin) in the management of systemic pneumococcal infections, or oral ampicillin (or amoxicillin) in treating localized, nonlife-threatening pneumococcal infections, was the penicillin allergy status of the patient. In the nonallergic patient, penicillin or its congeners, have been the drugs of choice largely because resistance to these agents remained uncommon. All of that changed dramatically in the U.S. during the early part of the decade of the 1990s with the emergence of high rates of antimicrobial resistance with S. pneumoniae, and concomitantly, the recognition of diminished efficacy when certain other antimicrobials were used to treat pneumococcal infections. The intent of this discussion is to address a variety of specific issues that pertain to the problem of antimicrobial resistance with S. pneumoniae. The format chosen is a selection of the most asked questions regarding S. pneumoniae and antimicrobial resistance, and then answers are provided.

The economic burden of antibiotic treatment of penicillin-allergic patients in internal medicine wards of a general tertiary care hospital.

Abstract: Summary Background Penicillin allergy poses a major problem in the management of infectious diseases. Objective We estimated the costs and usage of antibiotic treatment of ‘penicillin-allergic’ patients in comparison to non-allergic patients in a tertiary care hospital. Materials and methods The study was based on the records of 118 randomly chosen in-hospital patients labelled as being ‘allergic to penicillin’ and who were treated with antibiotics. The antibiotic selection and cost of the patients with alleged penicillin allergy were compared to 118 matched patients without an antibiotic allergy (controls). Results During in-hospital treatment, the mean antibiotic cost for penicillin-allergic patients was 63% higher than the cost for the controls. In addition, there was a 38% higher cost of the recommended anti-microbial treatment regimen to be followed upon discharge by the former compared to the latter. Conclusions Penicillin-allergic patients were more likely to receive broader spectrum antibiotics compared to the non-allergic ones. Since many of the patients who are labelled as being ‘allergic to penicillin’ are, in fact, not allergic to it, inaccurate reporting of penicillin allergies may have costly economic and epidemiologic repercussions in addition to more toxic effects which can occur when choosing alternative drugs in case of penicillin allergy.