Tebipenem (brand name Orapenem) is a broad-spectrum orally-administered antibiotic, from the

carbapenem Carbapenems are a class of very effective antibiotic agents most commonly used for the treatment of severe bacterial infections. This class of antibiotics is usually reserved for known or suspected multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections. ...

subgroup of

β-lactam antibiotic β-lactam antibiotics (beta-lactam antibiotics) are antibiotics that contain a beta-lactam ring in their chemical structure. This includes penicillin derivatives (penams), cephalosporins and cephamycins (cephems), monobactams, carbapenems and ...

s. It was developed as a replacement drug to combat bacteria that had acquired antibiotic resistance to commonly used antibiotics. Tebipenem is formulated as the

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides a ...

tebipenem pivoxil due to the better absorption and improved

bioavailability In pharmacology, bioavailability is a subcategory of absorption and is the fraction (%) of an administered drug that reaches the systemic circulation. By definition, when a medication is administered intravenously, its bioavailability is 100%. Ho ...

of this form. It has performed well in

clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel vaccines, drugs, diet ...

s for ear infection and looks likely to be further developed in future. It is only marketed in Japan. Tebipenem is the first carbapenem whose prodrug form, the pivalyl ester, is orally available.

References

Carbapenem antibiotics Prodrugs Thiazolines Formals {{antiinfective-drug-stub