Acta Pharm. 54 (2004) 231-242
[ Full paper in PDF ]Erythromycin taurate, a new derivative of erythromycin, was prepared by reacting the erythromycin base with tauric acid and its physico-chemical and biological properties were evaluated. The derivative has reasonably good solubility in organic solvents. The partition coefficient values in chloroform/water 1.17 and octanol/water 1.16 systems indicate its good distribution in various tissues in vivo. The in vitro antimicrobial potency of the derivative (833.33 microgramms per mg) is higher than the existing derivatives such as erythromycin estolate, erythromycin stearate, erythromycin ethyl succinate, erythromycin gluceptate, erythromycin lactobionate. The antimicrobial spectrum is comparable to that of the parent compound. Our results indicate that erythromycin taurate has a high potential for possible clinical application and is more efficient against Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae than the parent base.
Keywords: erythromycin taurate, antimicrobial potency in vitro, pharmacokinetic parameters in vivo