Antibiotics

ANTIBIOTICS

E. Aguilera

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1. What are the antibiotics?2. Who discovered them?3. Antibiotics nowadays

3.1. Resistance 3.2. High prices 3.3. Generic drugs

4. Summary

ANTIBIOTICS2

an antibiotic is a substance or compound that kills or inhibits the growth of bacteria

It can be a substance produced by a microorganism or synthesized

are relatively small molecules, such as penicillin

1. What are the antibiotics?3

2. Who discovered them?

• Over 2,500 years ago, Chinese medicine used plants with antibiotics properties

• Many other cultures, including Egyptians, Greeks and medieval Arabs used moulds and plants to treat infections

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Infection by Plasmodium organisms

is known as malaria

Quinine, most famously used for treatment of

malaria

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2. Who discovered them?• In 19th scientists observed that a bacillus could

inhibit the growth of another

The Scot, Alexander Fleming's discovery of

Penicillin in 1928

Paul Ehrlich, a German medical scientist in the late 1880s descovered

Salvarsan

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Marked the birth of the antibiotic revolution

Paul Ehrlich

Discovered a man-made antibiotic, Salvarsan, which were called magic bullets and cured the Syphilis

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Alexander Fleming was awarded with theNobel Prize in Medicine in 1945, sharedwith another two scientists

Alexander Fleming

Penicillin has antibacterial activity against a wide range of bacteria

Can be taken without causing adverse effects

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3. Antibiotics nowadays

3.1. Resistance

3.2. High prices

3.3. Generic drugs

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3.1. Resistance

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Antibiotic resistance

The ability to survive having the power not to be affected by antibiotics

Antibiotics are now less effective because bacteria have become more resistant

Acquired resistance results from a mutationin the bacterial chromosome

It is an evolutionary process that is based on selection

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Common forms of antibiotic misuse

Inappropriate antibiotic treatment by self-prescribing

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Common forms of antibiotic misuse

Non-therapeutic use of antibiotics as growth promoters in agriculture

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3.2. High prices

With the worldwide growth of resistance, new antibiotics are increasingly needed

Research and development (R&D) is expensive, particularly for clinical trials involving people

Product development can be a lengthy process

Both are unattractive features for most investors,who tend to be risk-averse

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3.2. High prices

Patent is an offcial right to be the only company to sell a drug

High drug prices have been the incentive for R&D investment

High prices mean many people cannot afford them in poor countries

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3.2. High prices

Even in industrialised countries, there are strategies to limit access, such as limited insurance coverage

The World Health Assembly considers it is necessary to deal with "the linkage of the cost of R&D and the price of medicines."

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3.3. Generic drugs

A generic drug is a drug which is produced and distributed without patent protection

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3.3. Generic drugs

When generic products become available, the market competition often leads to lower prices

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Antibiotics have improved our quality of life

But there are countries without resources to get them. The richest countries should make a bigger effort to provide public health there.

It is necessary to encourage pharmaceutical industry to invest in innovation rather than giving longer patent protection

4. Summary20

Public sector and donor investments in antibiotics are important, and are in the form of push mechanisms, such as grants to non-profit drug development.

Doha Declaration: It is an international agreement adopted by (WTO) World Trade Organization. It reaffirmed flexibility of states in avoiding patent rights for better access to essential medicines.

4. Summary21

SOME QUESTIONS (I)

How have bacteria become resistant?How can we let down the bacteria adaptation?Do you know any misuse of antibiotics?What is a pharmaceutical patent?What are the patent´s desadvantages?Which would be the consecuences if there were not patents?

SOME QUESTIONS (II)

When can a company sell generic drugs?How long is the life of a patent in US?Are generic drugs accesible to everybody?How could the WHO help better to the poorest countries?What is the importance of Doha declaration?