Abstract
Drug repositioning studies in recent decades have revealed a growing
number of antimicrobials effective at treating infection types
tangential to their original antimicrobial classification. Such
‘pan-pathogen antimicrobials’ (or ‘broad-spectrum anti-infectives’) have
not yet been formally characterised. This review examines historical
limitations of the canonical antimicrobial lexicon in light of the
contemporary model for infectious disease and propounds a taxonomy that
defines antimicrobials according to the host-pathogen interactome, not
the pathogen. By doing so, antimicrobials that are effective at treating
multiple infection types are highlighted, namely azithromycin,
ivermectin, niclosamide, and nitazoxanide. Recognition of the
pan-pathogen nature of these antimicrobials can stimulate a more unified
approach to antimicrobial development cognisant of generalised
anti-infective mechanisms within the host-pathogen interactome and
anticipatory of future pandemics and bioterrorist attacks.