imipenem

Description: Imipenem belongs to the carbapenem class of antibiotics that is isolated from the soil organism Streptomyces cattleya, and is an intravenous beta-lactam antibiotic discovered by Merck scientists Burton Christensen, William Leanza, and Kenneth Wildonger in 1980. It was the first member of the carbapenem class of antibiotics. Carbapenems are highly resistant to the beta-lactamase enzymes produced by many multiple drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, and thus play a key role in the treatment of infections not readily treated with other antibiotics.

References:

1. Zhanel GG, et al. Imipenem and meropenem: Comparison of in vitro activity, pharmacokinetics, clinical trials and adverse effects. Can J Infect Dis. 1998 Jul; 9(4):215-28.

2. Jacoby GA, et al. AmpC beta-lactamases. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2009 Jan; 22(1):161-82.

3. Sedighi M, Salehi-Abargouei A, Oryan G, Faghri J. Epidemiology of VIM-1-imipenem resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Iran: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Res Med Sci. 2014 Sep; 19(9):899-903. Review.