Editing Antibiotic (section)

==Production==
{{Main|Production of antibiotics}}
With advances in [[medicinal chemistry]], most modern antibacterials are [[semisynthetic]] modifications of various natural compounds.<ref name="Nussbaum2006">{{cite journal | vauthors = von Nussbaum F, Brands M, Hinzen B, Weigand S, Häbich D | title = Antibacterial natural products in medicinal chemistry--exodus or revival? | journal = Angewandte Chemie | volume = 45 | issue = 31 | pages = 5072–129 | date = August 2006 | pmid = 16881035 | doi = 10.1002/anie.200600350 }}</ref> These include, for example, the [[beta-lactam antibiotics]], which include the [[penicillin]]s (produced by fungi in the genus ''[[Penicillium]]''), the [[cephalosporin]]s, and the [[carbapenem]]s. Compounds that are still isolated from living organisms are the [[aminoglycoside]]s, whereas other antibacterials—for example, the [[Sulfonamide (medicine)|sulfonamides]], the [[quinolone antibiotic|quinolones]], and the [[oxazolidinone]]s—are produced solely by [[chemical synthesis]].<ref name="Nussbaum2006"/> Many antibacterial compounds are relatively [[small molecule]]s with a [[molecular weight]] of less than 1000 [[dalton (unit)|daltons]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=av5SHPiHVcsC&q=oral%20drug%20molecular%20weight%20distribution%20antibiotics&pg=PA800 |title=Antibiotic Discovery and Development |vauthors=Dougherty TJ, Pucci MJ |publisher=Springer |year=2011 |page=800 |isbn=978-1-4614-1400-1 |access-date=28 April 2024 |archive-date=2 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102114324/https://books.google.com/books?id=av5SHPiHVcsC&q=oral%20drug%20molecular%20weight%20distribution%20antibiotics&pg=PA800#v=snippet&q=oral%20drug%20molecular%20weight%20distribution%20antibiotics&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since the first pioneering efforts of [[Howard Florey]] and [[Ernst Boris Chain|Chain]] in 1939, the importance of antibiotics, including antibacterials, to [[medicine]] has led to intense research into producing antibacterials at large scales. Following screening of antibacterials against a wide range of [[bacteria]], production of the active compounds is carried out using [[industrial fermentation|fermentation]], usually in strongly [[wikt:aerobic|aerobic]] conditions.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Fedorenko V, Genilloud O, Horbal L, Marcone GL, Marinelli F, Paitan Y, Ron EZ | title = Antibacterial Discovery and Development: From Gene to Product and Back | journal = BioMed Research International | volume = 2015 | pages = 591349 | date = 2015 | pmid = 26339625 | pmc = 4538407 | doi = 10.1155/2015/591349 | doi-access = free | title-link = doi }}</ref>