Antibiotics - Macrolides : An Overview

Macrolides are a group of antibiotics used to treat certain bacterial infections in many different parts of the body. They are considered narrow-spectrum antibiotics because they are  active against  only a few  specific bacteria. Macrolides are ineffective against the common cold, flu, or other viral infections.

The most commonly-prescribed macrolides are:
Erythromycin, Clarithromycin, Azithromycin, Roxithromycin

Background of the Antibiotics Industry
1)  The Antibiotics industry evolved after the Second World War.
2)  Western  &  Chinese  companies are the major  producers of off-patent antibiotics and their intermediates /
     semi-synthetic derivatives.

The  anti-infectives market  is currently  valued  at US$66.5 billion  with the largest  segment derived from the sales of antibacterial  agents  which  generated  nearly  two  thirds  of  the  sales,  accounting  for  nearly  US$35  billion from community and hospital-based antibiotics.
The market  is driven by the sales of four leading drug classes: the  cephalosporins (27%),  macrolides (20%), quinol- ones (17%) and penicillins (17%). Together, these four drug classes account for over 80% of global antibacterial sales.

Macrolide Antibiotics
The second largest segment of the antibacterial market was derived from prescription of macrolides. These antibiotics are  widely  used in the treatment of respiratory  and urinary  tract infections. Two leading brands: Biaxin (Abbott) and Rocephin (Roche), generated  over a  quarter of  global sales; the  remainder  was  derived   from generics  and  other
tail-end antibiotics.
During  the  last  few  years a  number of  first-in-class  antibiotics  have been  launched, including  the glycylcyclines (Wyeth’s tigecycline),  oxazolidinones  (Pfizer’s linezolid)   and   lipopeptides  (Cubist’s daptomycin). However,  there continues  to be a need for new  drug-resistant  bacterial antibiotics. The majority of drugs in  clinical development fall
into the following classes:

The Future of the Antibacterial Market

By 2012 the  antibiotic  market landscape  will have  changed   dramatically as numerous leading brands face generic competition and a dozen new drugs are likely to enter the market. By 2012 sales of  leading brands will likely account for about 36% of global antibiotic sales.

Calyx is the leading manufacturer of Erythromycin base and  Erythromycin salts viz., Erythromycin stearate, Erythromycin estolate and Erythromycin ethylsuccinate. The antibiotic basket  also includes Roxithromycin. Azithromycin and Clarithromycin are in the development stage.