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Immunoassay reagents intended to perform quantitative analyses on a body fluid sample (e.g., serum, plasma) to measure levels of chloramphenicol, an antibiotic that acts by interfering with bacterial protein synthesis and is mainly bacteriostatic. Chloramphenicol is used in the treatment of a wide range of gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria; it is used specifically in the treatment of typhus and other rickettsial infections. Reagents for chloramphenicol drug level determination must be able to differentiate between the pro-drug forms (i.e., chloramphenicol palmitate or succinate) and their active metabolite chloramphenicol. These reagents are used to monitor the drug levels in patients undergoing treatment, either to ensure that a therapeutic drug level exists, or to diagnose a drug overdose or drug-related toxicity. Typical reference levels in blood, in micrograms per milliliter, are peak 20 to 30, predose (trough) 10, and toxic more than 50.
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