IVERMECTIN DISCOVERY BAGGED NOBEL

摘要

In 2015, Nobel Committee has selected the discovery of an anthelmintic which was commonly marketed as ivermectin and is presently available as Panacea~R for all sorts of parasites including ectoparasite. The active principle was derived from a soil bacterium known as Streptomyces avermitilis. The bacterium was originally detected by a Japanese scientist, Satoshi Omura who was interested to detect antimicrobial property of the soil microbe. The active principle was tested by William C. Campbell, an American parasitologist, who confirmed the anthelmentic property rather than antimicrobial activity. The microbe Streptomyces avermitilis was renamed as Streptomyces ivermectinius and the drug 'avermectin' is now known as 'ivermectin'. Chemically avermectins are complex of 16 member macrocyclic lactone and fermentation product derived from S. avermectinius. Ivermectin is the derivative of avermectin, chemically it can be described as 22-23 dihydro avermectin B1 a,b.