Oxytetracycline
Encyclopedia
Oxytetracycline was the second of the broad-spectrum
tetracycline group
of antibiotic
s to be discovered.
Oxytetracycline works by interfering with the ability of bacteria to produce proteins that are essential to them. Without these proteins the bacteria cannot grow, multiply and increase in numbers. Oxytetracycline therefore stops the spread of the infection and the remaining bacteria are killed by the immune system or eventually die.
Oxytetracycline is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is active against a wide variety of bacteria. However, some strains of bacteria have developed resistance to this antibiotic, which has reduced its effectiveness for treating some types of infection.
Oxytetracycline is still used to treat infections caused by chlamydia (e.g. the chest infection psittacosis, the eye infection trachoma, and the genital infection urethritis) and infections caused by mycoplasma organisms (e.g. pneumonia).
Oxytetracycline is used to treat acne, due to its activity against the bacteria on the skin that cause acne (Propionebacterium acnes). It is used to treat flare-ups of chronic bronchitis, due to its activity against the bacteria usually responsible, Haemophilus influenzae.
Oxytetracycline may also be used to treat other rarer infections, such as those caused by a group of micro-organisms called rickettsiae (e.g. Q fever). To make sure the bacteria causing an infection are susceptible to oxytetracycline your doctor may take a tissue sample, for example a swab from the infected area, or a urine or blood sample.
laboratories in a soil sample yielding the soil actinomycete, Streptomyces rimosus by Finlay et al. In 1950, a celebrated American
chemist
, Robert B Woodward, worked out the chemical structure of Oxytetracycline, enabling Pfizer to mass produce the drug under the trade name, Terramycin. This discovery by Woodward was a major advancement in Tetracycline research and paved the way for the discovery of an Oxytetracycline derivative, Doxycycline
, which is one of the most popularly used antibiotics today.
group). Its better absorption profile makes it preferable to tetracycline for moderately severe acne
at a dosage of 250–500 mg four times a day for usually 6–8 weeks at a time, but alternatives should be sought if no improvement occurs by 3 months.
It is sometimes used to treat Spirochaetal infection, Clostridial wound infection and Anthrax in patients sensitive to Penicillin. Oxytetracycline is used to treat infections of the respiratory and urinary tracts, skin, ear, eye and Gonorrhoea although the use of Tetracyclines for such purposes has declined in recent years due to large increases in bacterial resistance to this class of drugs. The drug is particularly useful when Penicillins and/or Macrolides cannot be used due to allergy. It may be used to treat Legionnaire's Disease as a substitute for a Macrolide or Quinolone.
Oxytetracycline is especially valuable in treating Non-Specific-Urethritis, LGV, Lyme disease, Brucellosis, Cholera, Plague, Typhus, Relapsing Fever, Tularaemia and infections caused by Chlamydia, Mycoplasma and Rickettsia. Doxycycline is now preferred to Oxytetracycline for many of these indications because it has improved pharmacologic features.
The standard dose is 250–500 mg six-hourly by mouth. In particularly severe infections this dose may be increased accordingly. Occasionally, Oxytetracycline is given by intramuscular injection or topically in the form of creams, ophthalmic ointments or eye drops.
and European Foulbrood
in honeybees.
Oxytetracycline can also be used to correct breathing disorders in livestock. Oxytetracycline is administered in a powder or through an intramuscular injection. American livestock producers apply oxytetracycline to livestock feed to prevent diseases and infections in cattle and poultry. The antibiotic is partially absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract of the animal and the remaining is deposited in manure. Researchers at the Agricultural Research Service
studied the breakdown of oxytetracycline in manure depending on various environmental conditions. They found that the breakdown of oxytetracycline slowed with increased saturation of the manure and concluded that this was a result of decreased oxygen levels. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2010/100304.htm This research helps producers understand the effects of oxytetracycline in animal feed on the environment, bacteria, and antimicrobial resistance.
group.
Can also damage calcium rich organs such as teeth and bones although this is very rare, sometimes causes nasal cavities to erode, quite common, the BNF suggests that because of this Tetracyclines should not be used to treat pregnant or lactating women and children under 12 except in certain conditions where it has been approved by a specialist because there are no obvious substitutes. Candidiasis (Thrush) is not uncommon following treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics.
Broad-spectrum antibiotic
The term broad-spectrum antibiotic refers to an antibiotic that acts against a wide range of disease-causing bacteria. A broad-spectrum antibiotic acts against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, in contrast to a narrow-spectrum antibiotic, which is effective against specific families of...
tetracycline group
Tetracycline antibiotics
Tetracyclines are a group of broad-spectrum antibiotics whose general usefulness has been reduced with the onset of bacterial resistance. Despite this, they remain the treatment of choice for some specific indications....
of antibiotic
Antibiotic
An antibacterial is a compound or substance that kills or slows down the growth of bacteria.The term is often used synonymously with the term antibiotic; today, however, with increased knowledge of the causative agents of various infectious diseases, antibiotic has come to denote a broader range of...
s to be discovered.
Oxytetracycline works by interfering with the ability of bacteria to produce proteins that are essential to them. Without these proteins the bacteria cannot grow, multiply and increase in numbers. Oxytetracycline therefore stops the spread of the infection and the remaining bacteria are killed by the immune system or eventually die.
Oxytetracycline is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is active against a wide variety of bacteria. However, some strains of bacteria have developed resistance to this antibiotic, which has reduced its effectiveness for treating some types of infection.
Oxytetracycline is still used to treat infections caused by chlamydia (e.g. the chest infection psittacosis, the eye infection trachoma, and the genital infection urethritis) and infections caused by mycoplasma organisms (e.g. pneumonia).
Oxytetracycline is used to treat acne, due to its activity against the bacteria on the skin that cause acne (Propionebacterium acnes). It is used to treat flare-ups of chronic bronchitis, due to its activity against the bacteria usually responsible, Haemophilus influenzae.
Oxytetracycline may also be used to treat other rarer infections, such as those caused by a group of micro-organisms called rickettsiae (e.g. Q fever). To make sure the bacteria causing an infection are susceptible to oxytetracycline your doctor may take a tissue sample, for example a swab from the infected area, or a urine or blood sample.
History
It was first found near PfizerPfizer
Pfizer, Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. The company is based in New York City, New York with its research headquarters in Groton, Connecticut, United States...
laboratories in a soil sample yielding the soil actinomycete, Streptomyces rimosus by Finlay et al. In 1950, a celebrated American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
, Robert B Woodward, worked out the chemical structure of Oxytetracycline, enabling Pfizer to mass produce the drug under the trade name, Terramycin. This discovery by Woodward was a major advancement in Tetracycline research and paved the way for the discovery of an Oxytetracycline derivative, Doxycycline
Doxycycline
Doxycycline INN is a member of the tetracycline antibiotics group, and is commonly used to treat a variety of infections. Doxycycline is a semisynthetic tetracycline invented and clinically developed in the early 1960s by Pfizer Inc. and marketed under the brand name Vibramycin. Vibramycin...
, which is one of the most popularly used antibiotics today.
Indications
Oxytetracycline, like other Tetracyclines, is used to treat many infections common and rare (see Tetracycline antibioticsTetracycline antibiotics
Tetracyclines are a group of broad-spectrum antibiotics whose general usefulness has been reduced with the onset of bacterial resistance. Despite this, they remain the treatment of choice for some specific indications....
group). Its better absorption profile makes it preferable to tetracycline for moderately severe acne
Acne vulgaris
Acne vulgaris is a common human skin disease, characterized by areas of skin with seborrhea , comedones , papules , pustules , Nodules and possibly scarring...
at a dosage of 250–500 mg four times a day for usually 6–8 weeks at a time, but alternatives should be sought if no improvement occurs by 3 months.
It is sometimes used to treat Spirochaetal infection, Clostridial wound infection and Anthrax in patients sensitive to Penicillin. Oxytetracycline is used to treat infections of the respiratory and urinary tracts, skin, ear, eye and Gonorrhoea although the use of Tetracyclines for such purposes has declined in recent years due to large increases in bacterial resistance to this class of drugs. The drug is particularly useful when Penicillins and/or Macrolides cannot be used due to allergy. It may be used to treat Legionnaire's Disease as a substitute for a Macrolide or Quinolone.
Oxytetracycline is especially valuable in treating Non-Specific-Urethritis, LGV, Lyme disease, Brucellosis, Cholera, Plague, Typhus, Relapsing Fever, Tularaemia and infections caused by Chlamydia, Mycoplasma and Rickettsia. Doxycycline is now preferred to Oxytetracycline for many of these indications because it has improved pharmacologic features.
The standard dose is 250–500 mg six-hourly by mouth. In particularly severe infections this dose may be increased accordingly. Occasionally, Oxytetracycline is given by intramuscular injection or topically in the form of creams, ophthalmic ointments or eye drops.
Veterinary indications
Oxytetracycline is used to control the outbreak of American FoulbroodDiseases of the honeybee
- Varroa mites :Varroa destructor and Varroa jacobsoni are parasitic mites that feed off the bodily fluids of adult, pupal and larval bees.Varroa mites can be seen with the naked eye as a small red or brown spot on the bee's thorax....
and European Foulbrood
Diseases of the honeybee
- Varroa mites :Varroa destructor and Varroa jacobsoni are parasitic mites that feed off the bodily fluids of adult, pupal and larval bees.Varroa mites can be seen with the naked eye as a small red or brown spot on the bee's thorax....
in honeybees.
Oxytetracycline can also be used to correct breathing disorders in livestock. Oxytetracycline is administered in a powder or through an intramuscular injection. American livestock producers apply oxytetracycline to livestock feed to prevent diseases and infections in cattle and poultry. The antibiotic is partially absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract of the animal and the remaining is deposited in manure. Researchers at the Agricultural Research Service
Agricultural Research Service
The Agricultural Research Service is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture . ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area...
studied the breakdown of oxytetracycline in manure depending on various environmental conditions. They found that the breakdown of oxytetracycline slowed with increased saturation of the manure and concluded that this was a result of decreased oxygen levels. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2010/100304.htm This research helps producers understand the effects of oxytetracycline in animal feed on the environment, bacteria, and antimicrobial resistance.
Side effects
Side effects are mainly gastrointestinal and photosensitive allergic reactions common to the tetracycline antibioticsTetracycline antibiotics
Tetracyclines are a group of broad-spectrum antibiotics whose general usefulness has been reduced with the onset of bacterial resistance. Despite this, they remain the treatment of choice for some specific indications....
group.
Can also damage calcium rich organs such as teeth and bones although this is very rare, sometimes causes nasal cavities to erode, quite common, the BNF suggests that because of this Tetracyclines should not be used to treat pregnant or lactating women and children under 12 except in certain conditions where it has been approved by a specialist because there are no obvious substitutes. Candidiasis (Thrush) is not uncommon following treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics.