Chloramphenicol

**Semantic type:** Antibiotic|Organic Chemical|Pharmacologic Substance

**Definition:** A semisynthetic, broad-spectrum antibiotic derived from Streptomyces venequelae with primarily bacteriostatic activity. Chloramphenicol diffuses through the bacterial cell wall and reversibly binds to the bacterial 50S ribosomal subunit. The binding interferes with peptidyl transferase activity, thereby prevents transfer of amino acids to the growing peptide chains and blocks peptide bond formation. As a result bacterial protein synthesis is blocked and impede bacterial cell proliferation.

**Synonyms:** - CHLORAMPHENICOL - [R-(R*,R*)]-2,2-Dichloro-N-[2-hydroxy-1-(hydroxymethyl)-2-(4-nitrophenyl)ethyl]acetamide