PENICILLIN
“I did not invent penicillin. Nature did that. I only discovered it by accident.” (A. Flemming)
Vocabulary
Culture plates – a flat container, especially a Petri dish, holding or designed to
hold a culture of bacteria, fungi, etc., on or in a nutrient medium.
To undergo – experience or be subjected to (something, typically something
unpleasant or arduous).
Hitherto – until now or until the point in time under discussion.
Strain – a force tending to pull or stretch something to an extreme or damaging
degree.
Therefore – for that reason; consequently.
Broth – a liquid medium containing proteins and other nutrients for the culture
of bacteria.
Drip – a small drop of a liquid.
Afford – provide or supply.
The discovery of penicillin and its
introduction into medicine has been
called “the greatest contribution to
medical science of the twentieth
century”. Its discovery made available
a most potent chemotherapeutic agent,
and opened an entirely new field of
therapy – the use of substances derived from moulds, bacteria and other
lower organisms as remedial agents.
Historical. In 1929, Alexander Fleming, while examining culture
plates of staphylococci, noted that the organisms surrounding a growth
of mould, which had accidentally contaminated the culture plate, had
undergone lysis. He proceeded to culture the mould and demonstrated
that the nutrient broth in which it had grown acquired the bactericidal
properties which had been noticed in the original culture plate. The
mould responsible for the production of this hitherto unknown
bactericidal substance was subsequently demonstrated to be a strain of
Penicillin notatum and the term penicillin was therefore used by
Fleming also showed that the bactericidal substance elaborated by this
fungus. Fleming also showed that the bactericidal activity of penicillin
was specific for certain organisms and that on injection in animals,
preparations of broth containing penicillin were relatively non-toxic.
The discovery of Fleming received little attention during the
following decade. However, during this period the remarkable success
attained with the sulfonamide derivatives as chemotherapeutic agents
and the recognition of their deficiencies stimulated interest in penicillin.
Chain, Florey and their associates at Oxford undertook the purification
of extracts containing penicillin and demonstrated their remarkable
antibacterial properties.
Dosage and Way of administration. The dosage and route of
administration of penicillin is determined by the nature and severity of
the disorder being treated. In more serious ailments, intramuscular
administration of 10,000 to 1,000,000 units of the crystalline preparation
dissolved in 1 to 10 ml of water, saline or glucose is indicated. These
injections are repeated every 2 to 6 hours depending on the desired
blood level.
The intramuscular route is preferred since intravenous injections
may be painful and not so readily absorbed. When very large doses are
indicated, a continuous intravenous drip affords a convenient route of
administration. When given intravenously, penicillin is administered in
normal saline or per cent glucose containing 25 to 50 units of the drug
per ml.
Penicillin may also be injected directly into body cavities, for
example into the pleural cavity or into an infected joint or abscess
cavity.
For local treatment of certain chronic infections of the respiratory
tract (sinusitis, bronchiectasis etc), penicillin may be inhaled in the form
of a powder or spray. For this purpose powdered penicillin or an aerosol
of penicillin, made by nebulizing a solution containing 25.000 to 50.000
units of the drug is used. Various forms of apparatus including tents,
breathing boxes and nebulizers are available for this purpose.
I. Answer the questions:
1) What did the discovery of penicillin lead to?
2) How was penicillin discovered?
3) What is the dosage and route of administration in more serious ailments?
4) What is the dosage in cases when penicillin is given intravenously?
5) What is the route of administration in cases of chronic infections of the
respiratory tract?
II. Answer true/ false on the following statements:
1) Penicillin has the form of powder, injection and spray.
2) Penicillin heralded the dawn of the antibiotic age.
3) Penicillin should be taken in the same doses.
4) Chain and Florey demonstrated the antibacterial properties of penicillin.
5) The intravenous injections of penicillin are more painful than the
intramuscular ones.
III. Fill in the missing words:
The discovery of _________made available a most potent chemotherapeutic
agent, and opened an entirely new field of therapy – the use of __________
derived from ____________, bacteria and other lower organisms as remedial
agents. The dosage and route of administration of penicillin is determined by
the __________ and ___________ of the disorder being treated.
IV. Match and make up sentences:
1. Sir Alexander Fleming, a a. he noticed that the culture
Scottish researcher, prevented the growth of
staphylococci.
2. Upon examination of the mold, b. is credited with the discovery of
penicillin in 1928.
3. Though Fleming stopped c. reduce the number of deaths and
studying penicillin in 1931, amputations of troops during
World War II.
4. Penicillin helped d. changed the world of medicine
enormously.
5. The discovery of penicillin e. his research was continued and
finished by Howard Flory and
Ernst Chain.
V. Watch the video: The Discovery of Penicillin | PBS LearningMedia
