4. Antibiotics and Enzyme Production

• Antibiotics


  Substances that a microorganism produces which can kill or prevent the growth of other microorganisms
• Antibiosis


  The production of heterogeneous organic compounds by microbes to act against pathogens against their growth and development
• Pasteur and Koch observed antibiosis when an airborne bacillus had the ability to inhibit the growth of Bacillus anthracis


  1877
• Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin accidentally after observing a Staphylococcus culture contaminated by Penicillium notatum


  1928
• Golden age of Antibiotics

  • 1940-1960, when many different antimicrobials were derived from both natural and synthetic sources
• Common drug strategies

  • Prophylaxis
  • Combined therapy
  • Drug synergy
• Narrow-spectrum antimicrobials


  Effective against limited microbial types
• Broad-spectrum antimicrobials


  Have the greatest range of activity, working on most gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria
• Drug action mechanisms

  1. Inhibition of cell wall

  2. Breakdown of cell membrane

  3. Interferences of DNA/RNA function

  4. Inhibition of protein synthesis

  5. Blockage of key metabolic pathways
• Enzymes

  Proteins that help speed up chemical reactions in our bodies, essential for digestion, liver function and much more
• Industrial production of enzymes

  1. Selection of microorganisms

  2. Formulation of medium

  3. Production process

  4. Recovery and purification of enzymes

  5. Formulation

  6. Quality control
• Antibiotic production

  Done in batches through fermentation, may take several days to yield an extractable amount of product
• During World War II, the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom approached the largest U.S. chemical and pharmaceutical companies to enlist them in the race to mass produce penicillin, the "wonder drug"
• Methods of antibiotic production

  • Natural fermentation
  • Semi-synthetic
  • Synthetic