[Reactions of derivatives of beta-lactam antibiotics with non-antibacterial biological activity]

Beyond the well-known antibacterial and beta-lactamase enzyme inhibiting properties of the different beta-lactam antibiotics and their modified derivatives there are a number of beta-lactam (azetidine-2-one) compounds possessing different biological activities. Most of them have been shown to inhibit a variety of cysteine or serine protease enzymes comprising plants, viruses, protozoa, bacteria and mammalian species. This review article covers the biologically active beta-lactam compounds but beta-lactam antibiotics or beta-lactamase inhibitors, and including a few chemically related gamma- or delta-lactams or azetidines presumably having the same site and mechanism of action. These include viral protease inhibitors, protozoan enzymes (e.g. cruzain, falcipain), plant enzymes (papain). Of the mammal enzymes the most important ones are cholesterol absorption inhibitors and human leucocyte (neutrophyle) elastase inhibitors, but mention must be made on thrombin, chymotrypsin, cathepsin, prostata specific antigen and tumor necrosis factor inhibitors, as potential future remedies of cardio vascular and inflammatory diseases.