6 beta-Iodopenicillanic acid (UI-38,006), a beta-lactamase inhibitor that extends the antibacterial spectrum of beta-lactam compounds: initial bacteriological characterization.

UK-38,006, 6 beta-iodopenicillanic acid, was shown to be a potent inhibitor of beta-lactamase enzymes. It potentiated the antibacterial action of ampicillin in vitro against beta-lactamase-producing strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Haemophilus influenzae, Bacteroides fragilis. Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and many Enterobacteriaceae. This ability to synergize with ampicillin was also demonstrated in vivo after oral administration of UK-38,006 to experimentally infected mice. UK-38,006 was also shown to synergize in vitro with other penicillins and cephalosporins against beta-lactamase-producing strains of Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, and Klebsiella species.