Abstract
THERE is abundant evidence to support the theory that at least one way in which penicillin exerts its antibacterial effect is to prevent the synthesis, during cell division, of a rigid component of the cell wall. If this action takes place in normal culture medium, the result is lysis ; if in a hypertonic environment, the cell changes into a spherical body or spheroplast1. We have found that the parent amine, 6-aminopenicillanic acid2, from which the natural penicillins may be considered to be derived by acylation, induces morphological changes similar to those produced by benzylpenicillin, 6-(α-phenoxypropionamido)penicillanic acid (‘Broxil’), and phenoxymethylpenicillin (penicillin V).
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References
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HUGO, W., RUSSELL, A. Action of 6-Aminopenicillanic Acid on Gram-negative Bacteria. Nature 188, 875 (1960). https://doi.org/10.1038/188875a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/188875a0
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