List of important Antibiotics, its Source and Action
Antibiotics are introduced in 1940s and 1950s. They are medicines which are used to treat infections or diseases caused by bacteria like respiratory diseases i.e. pneumonia etc. Or we can say that it is a type of medication that destroys or slows down the growth of bacteria.
Below is the list of various antibiotics its source and action. From this table it will be clear that in what type of disease or infection which antibiotic is useful.
| Antibiotics |
Source |
Action |
|---|---|---|
| Pencillin |
Penicillium chrysogenum, P.notatum + Phenyl Acetic Acid |
Tonsilitis, Sore Throat, Gnonorrhea, Rheumatic Fever, some Pneumonia types. |
| Griseofulvin |
Penicillium griseofulvum |
Antifungal, especially for Ringworm. |
| Nystatin |
Streptomyces noursei |
Antifungal for Candidiasis and overgrowth of Intestinal Fungi during excessive antibiotic treatment. |
| Hamycin |
Streptomyces pimprei |
Antifungal for Thrush |
| Fumagillin |
Aspergillus fumigatus |
Broad spectrum antibacterial especially against Salmonella and Shigella. |
| Bacitracin |
Bacillus licheniformis |
Syphilis, Lymphonema or Reticulosis. |
| Streptomycin |
Streptomyces griseus |
Meningitis, Pneumonia, Tuberculosis and Local Infection. Toxic in some through eighth cranial nerve. |
| Chloramphenicol Chloromycetin |
Streptomyces venezuelae, S.lavendulae and now synthetic |
Typhoid, Typhus, Whooping cough, A typical Pneumonia, Bacterial Urinary Infections. |
| Tetracyclines/Aureomycin |
Streptomyces aureofaciens |
Viral pneumonia, Osteomyelitis, Whooping Cough and Eye infections. |
| Oxytetracycline/Terramycin |
Chlorotetracycline- Hydrogenation Streptomyces rimousus |
Intestinal and Urinary Infections (Spirochaetes, Rickettsia and Viruses) |
| Erythromycin |
Streptomyces erythreus (=S. erythraeus) |
Typhoid, Common Pneumonia and Diphtheria, Whooping Cough, etc. |
| Gentamycin |
Micromonosopora purpurea |
Effective against Gram (+) bacteria |
| Polymixin |
Bacillus polymyxa |
Antifungal |
There are some antibiotics which are developed through various Biotechnologies. Below the list of it.
| Some Antibiotics Developed through Biotechnology |
|
|---|---|
| Antibiotic |
Microbial Source |
| Penicillin |
Penicillium notatum and P chrysogenum |
| Bacitracin |
Bacillus subtilis |
| Cephalosporin |
Cephalosporium acremonium |
| Griseofulvin |
Penicillium griseofulvum |
| Streptomycin |
Streptomyces griseus |
| Tetracycline |
S erythraeus |
| Erythromycin |
S aureofaciens |
| Chloramphenicol |
S venezuelae |
Now let us see how do Antibiotics work?
An antibiotic work by killing the bacteria, block the important procedure that took place in bacteria or stops them from multiplying which helps the immune system to fight against the bacterial infection. There are some antibiotics that affect a wide range of bacteria known as broad spectrum antibiotics. Some affects only few types of bacteria known as narrow spectrum antibiotics. So, we can say that different types of antibiotics work in different ways. Like penicillin destroys bacterial cells some stops working bacteria’s cell work.
