Introduction
Penicillin is an antibiotic drug that’s used to treat many different types of bacterial infections. It’s a popular medication and one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the world.
The Discovery of Penicillin
The discovery of penicillin began in 1928 when Alexander Fleming discovered that the fungus Penicillium inhibited the growth of certain bacteria. This was a breakthrough in medical science because until then, there was no effective treatment for infections such as pneumonia and gonorrhea.
Development of Antibiotics
In fact, hospitals were filled with people with infections who could not be treated with antibacterial medications. It wasn’t until the 1940s, when a team at Oxford University discovered the first antibiotics, that doctors were able to help their patients heal quickly and effectively.
Industrial Production of Penicillin
When the research on penicillin was being done at Oxford, researchers had a difficult time getting the drug out of its mold filtrate. The chemistry of the mold had to be perfected before the drug could be produced in large quantities.
Special Culture Vessels
Fortunately, the researchers were lucky enough to have access to a very special kind of culture vessel. It was designed to be able to process up to 500 liters a week of mold extract, and this made it possible to make penicillin in an industrial manner.
Advances in Antibiotic Production
These special vessels were a huge step forward in the production of antibiotics, and they were used by scientists across the country. They were able to increase the amount of penicillin that could be made by adding corn-steep liquor, sucrose, and lactose into the mold ferment.
Desensitization Method
Another big advance was the ability to make antibiotics in a more controlled way. The team was able to use a method known as desensitization, which involves introducing small doses of the drug intravenously or orally into the body in very tiny amounts every 15-20 minutes for a period of 4 hours or so. This method has helped many patients recover from a serious reaction to penicillin, and it’s typically effective for most people.
Development of New Types of Penicillin
Once the researchers had perfected their technique, they began to develop a new type of penicillin. It was based on the original penicillin-G structure, but it was now a semisynthetic version of the natural antibiotic. The scientists found that they could change the structure of the compound in different ways, so that it was more active against certain bacterial species and less active against others.
Resistance to -lactamase
They also developed a form of penicillin that is resistant to the enzyme called -lactamase, which is responsible for making bacteria resistant to most antibiotics. This type of penicillin was used to help save the lives of people during World War II.
Chemically Related Antibiotics
Today, there are more than 15 chemically related antibiotics that are available for treatment of a variety of bacterial infections. Each of these has different strengths and targets, and they may be given together with other antibiotics to help your body fight off the infection.
Consult Your Healthcare Provider
If you are diagnosed with a bacterial infection and need to take penicillin, talk with your health care provider. They can help determine which type of penicillin is best for you and discuss how to manage the medication.
