Different roads to discovery; Prontosil (hence sulfa drugs) and penicillin (hence beta-lactams).
The important chemotherapeutic agents, Prontosil and pentenylpenicillin (penicillin F), were investigated initially by two men, Domagk and Fleming, who had been influenced by the horrendous wound infections of World War I. The very different pathways leading to their development and to that of the successor antibacterials (sulfa drugs, further penicillins, semi-synthetic penicillins), including the role played by patents, are discussed.
Bentley
Ronald
R
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA. rbentley@pitt.edu
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000266:history; D055808:Drug Discovery / Q000266:history*; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010330:Patents as Topic; D010406:Penicillins / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010128:p-Aminoazobenzene / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000627:therapeutic use; D044482:Benzeneacetamides
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D010406:Penicillins; D010128:p-Aminoazobenzene; C003359:sulfamidochrysoidine; D044482:Benzeneacetamides