1938

Ernst Chain, working under Florey at Oxford, begins investigation of three antibacterial substances, one of which was Fleming’s strain of penicillin (P. notatum) (Macfarlane, 169ff.). In January, May & Baker chemists begin work on first large batch of T693 (M&B 693 =sulfapyridine), the first and only sulfa drug effective against pneumococcal infections, esp. pneumococcal pneumonia; it was released on British market in October as Dagenan and in US was licensed to Merck approved for interstate commerce by FDA in March, 1939. It was one of the first important drugs approved by the newly empowered FDA under the Federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act of 1938. Sulfapyridine replaced serum therapy (via antipneumococcal serums) for treatment of type I pneumonia only (= 30% of all pneumonia cases) which was problematic, difficult to administer , and costly (Lesch, 108-110; Lesch III, 158-183; Hager, 236-245). It was also effective for other bacterial infections, esp. gonorrhea and cerebrospinal meningitis (Lesch III, 171-175).