Novobiocin: a laboratory investigation
Lubash, G.; Van Der Meulen, J.; Berntsen, C.; Tompsett, R.
Antibiotic Medicine and Clinical Therapy 2(4): 233-240
1956
ISSN/ISBN: 0570-3107 PMID: 13303119 Document Number: 9457
Novobiocin, a new antibiotic, has been studied in the laboratory, and preliminary observations have been made on its absorption and distribution in man. Novobiocin has been found to be highly active in vitro on all strains of Staph. aureus tested, including strains that are highly resistant to all of the other commonly used antibiotics. The drug is also active in vitro against other gram-positive cocci. In general, novobiocin is relatively inactive on most gram-negative bacilli tested with the exception of certain strains of P. vulgaris. The in vitro activity is markedly inhibited by human serum, probably because of its high degree of binding by serum albumin. Novobiocin is well absorbed when administered orally and reaches high concentrations in the blood. It has not been found, however, in cerebrospinal fluid or pleural fluid but has been demonstrated in bile. Novobiocin has been administered to 30 patients and has been well tolerated without serious untoward effects. The only side effects thus far observed have been skin eruptions, which have occurred in 2 patients. This drug, therefore, appears to be of potential value in the treatment of some infections, notably staphylococcal, for which current therapy is frequently unsatisfactory. The high degree of binding of novobiocin by serum albumin would appear to be a potentially serious disadvantage of this drug, and its possible role in inactivation of the drug in vivo will require careful clinical evaluation.
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