A Little Help from Ester

Penem antibiotics have been around since 1985, but all three on the global market must be given intravenously. Daiichi Suntory Pharma Co. Ltd. developed the first oral penem, faropenem sodium, which it launched in Japan in 1997. Last week, Replidyne Inc. acquired exclusive North American rights to faropenem daloxate, the ester prodrug of faropenem sodium.

Faropenem daloxate works against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria to treat community-acquired infections (see B4).Faropenem daloxate is similar to carbapenem, in that they share a resistance to beta-lactamase degradation. Like other beta-lactam antibiotics, including penicillins and cephalosporins, faropenem daloxate binds to penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) and interferes with transpeptidation reactions required for the synthesis of the bacterial cell wall...