ertapenem

Description: Ertapenem is a 1-beta-methyl carbapenem antibiotic marketed by Merck as Invanz. Ertapenem is a long-acting, broad-spectrum antibiotic of beta-lactam subclass. Ertapenem has a broad spectrum of antibacterial activity including common aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and organisms with extended-spectrum beta-lactamases. Ertapenem is an inhibitor of bacteria cell-wall synthesis, it acts by binding to penicillin binding proteins located on the bacterial cell wall, in particular PBPs 2 and 3, thereby inhibiting the final transpeptidation step in the synthesis of peptidoglycan, an essential component of the bacterial cell wall. Inhibition of peptidoglycan synthesis results in weakening and lysis of the cell wall and cell death. Erapenem is resistant to hydrolysis by a variety of beta-lactamases, including penicillinases, cephalosporinases and extended-spectrum beta-lactamases.

References: Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2011 Nov; 55(11):4943-60.

Related CAS#: 153773-82-1 (sodium); 153832-38-3 (disodium)