Penicillin trivia
Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2015 7:50 am
At the time, [1942] penicillin was a rare and valuable elixir. With the ongoing war raging in Europe and in east Asia, there were few industrial plants and even fewer laborers that could manufacture a relatively untested medication. This was precious stuff, scarce in quantity but potent in implementation, and so it was a remarkably handy thing that the drug known as the “magic bullet” wasn’t just a one-hit, one-person wonder, but could be used and reused time and time again.
Wait, what?
Yes: After one administration of injected penicillin, anywhere from 40 to 99 percent of the antibiotic is excreted in urine in its fully functional form about 4 hours after administration thanks to our efficient and hardworking kidneys (2). Due to this distinct feature of its pharmacokinetics, penicillin could be extracted from the crystalized urine of a treated patient and then used to treat another patient in the throes of serious bacterial infection just next door.
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/bodyh ... #more-1886
Wait, what?
Yes: After one administration of injected penicillin, anywhere from 40 to 99 percent of the antibiotic is excreted in urine in its fully functional form about 4 hours after administration thanks to our efficient and hardworking kidneys (2). Due to this distinct feature of its pharmacokinetics, penicillin could be extracted from the crystalized urine of a treated patient and then used to treat another patient in the throes of serious bacterial infection just next door.
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/bodyh ... #more-1886