Immunogenicity of Semisynthetic Penicillins

Allergic reactions following drug therapy with penicillin are a well known, unpleasant, rather frequent and occasionally dangerous phenomenon. The immunological processes leading to sensitization against Penicillin G (PG) and the factors operative in the elicitation of hypersensitivity reactions against the drug have mainly been elucidated by the extensive work of Eisen, Parker [25–27], DeWeck [41–45] and B. Levine [16–23]. Antibodies with penicilloyl specificity have been demonstrated in the serum of animals experimentally immunized with PG and more important in the majority of human beings suffering from allergy against penicillin. In vivo allergic reactions could be elicited with penicil…