DOW COLLEGE OF BIOTECHNOLOGY

PHARMACOLOGY ASSIGNMENT

Group - 1
Topic- Penicillin

Subject- Pharmacology

Class- Semester-5 (3rd year)

GROUP MEMBERS:

NAMES ROLL NO.

Javeria Naseer 44/2020/036
Hamza Najam 44/2020/040
Armeen Shakir 44/2020/032
Aresha 44/2020/020
Laiba Khan 44/2020/037

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BRIEF HISTORY

A class of antibiotics known as penicillin is derived from the fungus Penicillium. The
accidental discovery of penicillin by Fleming in the early 20th century, is regarded as one of
the most significant medical breakthroughs and has saved millions of lives. But he was
unable to purify it. The University of Oxford's Howard Florey and Ernst Chain started their
penicillin research in the 1930s. They were able to purify the substance, and conduct tests on
animals that showed its effectiveness at treating bacterial infections. They were able to
mass-produce penicillin in time for use in World War II thanks to support from the British
government. Pneumonia, strep throat, and syphilis were just a few of the bacterial illnesses
for which penicillin swiftly established itself as the standard treatment. Because of its
extreme efficiency, it was frequently referred to as a "miracle drug" A significant public
health worry in recent years has been the emergence of antibiotic resistance in bacteria as a
result of the extensive use of penicillin. As bacterial threats change over time, researchers are
still looking for new antibiotics.

DISCOVERY AND EXPERIMENTATION

The Scottish scientist Alexander Fleming is attributed with the discovery of penicillin, which
was brought to light purely by accident. A bacteriologist at St. Mary’s Hospital, speaking to a
colleague upon his return from vacation, observed a mold that had infected one of his petri
dishes in 1928. He noticed that the bacteria that had grown nearby had been eliminated but
the bacteria in other parts of the dish had continued to expand normally. Penicillium notatum
was the mold that Fleming spotted, and the compound it produced was tagged with the name,
penicillin. He discovered that penicillin had an antibacterial effect on gram-positive
organisms like staphylococci. Fleming made a ground-breaking discovery, but was unable to
purify the compound.

USES OF PENICILLIN:
● SYPHILIS: penicillin for treatment of syphilis, a sexually transmitted infection
caused by bacterium Treponema pallidum.
● DENTAL INFECTION: penicillin to treat dental infection such as abscesses.
● SKIN AND SOFT TISSUE INFECTION: penicillin to treat bacterial infection of
skin and soft tissue such as impetigo.
● GALLIUM: now entering clinical trials as an antimicrobial treatment for patients with
cystic fibrosis.
● ERYTHROMYCIN: drug synthesised by the soil bacterium Streptomyces
erythraeus and used in the treatment of throat infections, Pneumonia.
● AQUEOUS PENICILLIN G: for treatment of streptococcal and staphylococcal
infections.
● BENZYLPENICILLIN: has been the mainstay of therapy for serious pneumococcal,
streptococcal, meningococcal and gonococcal infections.

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 ● HAEMOPHILUS INFLUENZAE: in the treatment of upper and lower respiratory
tract infections and urinary tract infections.
SIDE EFFECTS OF PENICILLIN:
● Penicillin V potassium- Skin rash or hives, Itching, true anaphylaxis hypersensitivity
● Amoxicillin- Anaphylaxis, Allergy
● Amoxicillin plus clavulanate- Same as for amoxicillin, plus the following: Rash,
Hives
● Cloxacillin- rash, rarely hives, anaphylaxis
MECHANISM OF ACTION
Penicillin hinders the cell wall synthesis. Its B lactamase ring an analog to the enzyme
transpeptidase, irreversibly acrylates, hence the process transpeptidation (an essential reaction
in cross linking peptidoglycan) is inhibited. Cell wall synthesis is disrupted.

Moreover Penicillin activates autolytic enzymes in bacteria cell walls which creates gaps and
lesions therefore bactericidal.

Autolysins are abundant in bacterial cell walls, responsible for maintaining structure (shape
and size) and play a key role in cell division cytokinesis. The activity of autolysin is regulated
by components such as cell wall and teichoic acid.

Penicillin causes destruction of the cell wall and disintegration of teichoic acid as a result of
which autolysin is activated and causes cell lysis.

FDA APPROVAL:

Penicillin was approved by the FDA by March 1944.

a. Amoxicillin approved, prior to January 1,1982.
b. Amoxicillin plus clavulanate approved on 8/6/1984.
c. Penicillin v potassium approved, Prior to January 1, 1982.
d. Cloxacillin approved on September 17, 1974.

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REFERENCES
1. Lobanovska, M., & Pilla, G. (2017). Penicillin's Discovery and Antibiotic Resistance:
Lessons for the Future?. The Yale journal of biology and medicine, 90(1), 135–145.
2. Ligon, B. L. (2004). Penicillin: its discovery and early development. Seminars in
Pediatric Infectious Diseases, 15(1), 52–57. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.spid.2004.02.001
3. Mohsen, S., Dickinson, J. A., & Somayaji, R. (2020). Update on the adverse effects of
antimicrobial therapies in community practice. Canadian family physician Médecin de
famille canadien, 66(9), 651–659.
4. Nathwani, D., & Wood, M. J. (1993). Penicillins. A current review of their clinical
pharmacology and therapeutic use. Drugs, 45(6), 866–894.
https://doi.org/10.2165/00003495-199345060-00002
5. Gaynes R. (2017). The Discovery of Penicillin—New Insights After More Than 75
Years of Clinical Use. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 23(5), 849–853.
https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2305.161556
6. DrugCentral 2023 2022 Update-Veterinary Drugs & Uses cloxacillin. Available
at: https://drugcentral.org/drugcard/720 (Accessed: May 1, 2023).
7. Sean P. Kane, P.D.Penicillin V, Penicillin V - Drug Usage Statistics, ClinCalc
DrugStats Database. Available at: https://clincalc.com/DrugStats/Drugs/PenicillinV
(Accessed: May 1, 2023).
8. Sean P. Kane, P.D.Amoxicillin plus clavulanate , Drug Not Found - ClinCalc
DrugStats Database. Available at:
https://clincalc.com/DrugStats/Drugs/AmoxicillinClavulanatenate (Accessed: May 1,
2023).
9. Sean P. Kane, P.D.Amoxicillin, Amoxicillin - Drug Usage Statistics, ClinCalc
DrugStats Database. Available at: https://clincalc.com/DrugStats/Drugs/Amoxicillin
(Accessed: May 1, 2023).
10. Yocum, R. R., Rasmussen, J. R., & Strominger, J. L. (1980). The mechanism of
action of penicillin. Penicillin acylates the active site of Bacillus
stearothermophilus D-alanine carboxypeptidase. The Journal of biological
chemistry, 255(9), 3977–3986.