Aztreonam

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A synthetic antibiotic drug that is effective against many gram-negative bacteria and is used to treat serious infections
2. A man-made antibacterial medicine belonging to the monobactam group, often given to fight severe infections caused by gram-negative germs
3. A laboratory-made beta-lactam antibiotic used in hospitals to combat dangerous bacterial infections, particularly those caused by gram-negative organisms

Etymology: Aztreonam is a name built from parts, not an old word with a hidden story. It is a synthetic antibiotic, and its name was assembled by its makers from the chemical structure it shares with a natural bacterial compound: the "aztre" part refers to the monobactam ring, and "-onam" follows the pattern used for drug names of this class. The name is a modern coinage, so it has no ancient or medieval history at all. The drug belongs to a group called monobactams, named for the single (mono-) ring in their structure, in contrast to the fused two-ring beta-lactams like penicillin. Monobactams were discovered in soil and bacterial cultures, and aztreonam itself was developed as a fully synthetic version of that natural lead.