Antibiotics, chemical categories

When grouped on the basis of similarities in their chemical structure, most antibiotics fall into the categories listed in Table 1.17. S-Lactams, which include penicillins and cephalosporins, exhibit a characteristic /i-lactam core ring structure (a four-atom cyclic amide) (Figure 1.14). They induce their bacteriocidal activity by inhibiting the synthesis of peptidoglycan, an essential component of the bacterial cell wall. 

The category Enzymes as industrial catalysts , including the starch-processing, antibiotics and the fine-chemicals industry, is covered in chapter 4. 

Antibiotics represent a chemically quite heterogenous category of compounds, for which the Cl 8 phases appear sorbents of the first choice. A group of these compounds (tetracyclines) was successfully separated by open tubular capillary electrochromatography using Cl8 modified capillaries. The results reported to be obtained in this system were better than those obtained with either monolithic columns or open diol columns [123] (Fig. 10.26). 

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