![]() The term antibiotic was first used in 1942 by Selman Waksman and his collaborators in journal articles to describe any substance produced by a microorganism that is antagonistic to the growth of other microorganisms in high dilution. These drugs were later renamed antibiotics by Selman Waksman, an American microbiologist, in 1947. Antibiosis was first described in 1877 in bacteria when Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch observed that an airborne bacillus could inhibit the growth of Bacillus anthracis. The term 'antibiosis', meaning "against life", was introduced by the French bacteriologist Jean Paul Vuillemin as a descriptive name of the phenomenon exhibited by these early antibacterial drugs. Global deaths attributable to antimicrobial resistance numbered 1.27 million in 2019. The World Health Organization has classified antimicrobial resistance as a widespread "serious threat is no longer a prediction for the future, it is happening right now in every region of the world and has the potential to affect anyone, of any age, in any country". However, the effectiveness and easy access to antibiotics have also led to their overuse and some bacteria have evolved resistance to them. ![]() Alexander Fleming (1881–1955) discovered modern day penicillin in 1928, the widespread use of which proved significantly beneficial during wartime. Antibiotics revolutionized medicine in the 20th century. The first person to directly document the use of molds to treat infections was John Parkinson (1567–1650). Many civilizations used topical application of moldy bread, with many references to its beneficial effects arising from ancient Egypt, Nubia, China, Serbia, Greece, and Rome. "Antibacterials" include antiseptic drugs, antibacterial soaps, and chemical disinfectants, whereas antibiotics are an important class of antibacterials used more specifically in medicine and sometimes in livestock feed.Īntibiotics have been used since ancient times. However, both classes have the same goal of killing or preventing the growth of microorganisms, and both are included in antimicrobial chemotherapy. Sometimes, the term antibiotic-literally "opposing life", from the Greek roots ἀντι anti, "against" and βίος bios, "life"-is broadly used to refer to any substance used against microbes, but in the usual medical usage, antibiotics (such as penicillin) are those produced naturally (by one microorganism fighting another), whereas non-antibiotic antibacterials (such as sulfonamides and antiseptics) are fully synthetic. They are also not effective against fungi drugs which inhibit growth of fungi are called antifungal drugs. Antibiotics are not effective against viruses such as the common cold or influenza drugs which inhibit growth of viruses are termed antiviral drugs or antivirals rather than antibiotics. A limited number of antibiotics also possess antiprotozoal activity. They may either kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention of such infections. aureus, resulting in a zone of inhibition.Īn antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. Testing the susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus to antibiotics by the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method – antibiotics diffuse from antibiotic-containing disks and inhibit growth of S. ![]()
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