Pirlimycin hydrochloride belongs to the lincosamide

Lincosamides

Lincosamides are a class of antibiotics.-Mechanism of action:Lincosamides kill bacteria by interfering with the synthesis of proteins. They bind to the 23s portion of the 50S subunit of bacterial ribosomes and cause premature dissociation of the peptidyl-tRNA from the ribosome...

 class of antimicrobial

Antimicrobial

An anti-microbial is a substance that kills or inhibits the growth of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, or protozoans. Antimicrobial drugs either kill microbes or prevent the growth of microbes...

s. Under the trade name Pirsue, it is used in the treatment of mastitis

Mastitis

Mastitis is the inflammation of breast tissue. S. aureus is the most common etiological organism responsible, but S. epidermidis and streptococci are occasionally isolated as well.-Terminology:...

 in cattle

Cattle

Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...

.

Activity

Pirlimycin is active against Gram-positive bacteria, specifically Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a facultative anaerobic Gram-positive coccal bacterium. It is frequently found as part of the normal skin flora on the skin and nasal passages. It is estimated that 20% of the human population are long-term carriers of S. aureus. S. aureus is the most common species of...

and coagulase negative

Coagulase

Coagulase is a protein produced by several microorganisms that enables the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin. In the laboratory, it is used to distinguish between different types of Staphylococcus isolates. Coagulase negativity excludes S. aureus. That is to say, S...

 species of Staphylococcus

Staphylococcus

Staphylococcus is a genus of Gram-positive bacteria. Under the microscope they appear round , and form in grape-like clusters....

and Streptococcus

Streptococcus

Streptococcus is a genus of spherical Gram-positive bacteria belonging to the phylum Firmicutes and the lactic acid bacteria group. Cellular division occurs along a single axis in these bacteria, and thus they grow in chains or pairs, hence the name — from Greek στρεπτος streptos, meaning...

. It has no activity against Gram-negative bacteria.

Mechanism of action

It is bacteriostatic

Bacteriostatic agent

A bacteriostatic agent or bacteriostat, abbreviated Bstatic, is a biological or chemical agent that stops bacteria from reproducing, while not necessarily harming them otherwise. Depending on their application, bacteriostatic antibiotics, disinfectants, antiseptics and preservatives can be...

 and acts by inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis via binding with the 50S

50S

50S is the larger subunit of the 70S ribosome of prokaryotes. It is the site of inhibition for antibiotics such as macrolides, chloramphenicol, clindamycin, and the pleuromutilins. It includes the subunits 5S and 23S.-Structure:...

subunit of the ribosome.