BACTERIAL-RESISTANCE TO BETA-LACTAM ANTIB IOTICS

The emergence of beta-lactam resistant pathogenic strains has recently become a worrying clinical problem. In this review, the ,various fact ors which contribute to bacterial resistance are described ana discuss ed. The study of the three-dimensional structure of beta-lactamases an d penicillin-binding proteins supplies the cornerstone for the design of new antibacterial agents. This type of approach rests on the unders tanding of fundamental phenomena such as cell division, enzyme catalys is and gene control and covers a wide range of scientific fields, from microbiology to the study of enzymatically catalysed reactions by the methods of quantum chemistry.