Derivatives
Lepetit introduced Rifampicin, an orally active rifamycin, around 1966. Rifabutin, a derivative of rifamycin S, was invented around 1975 and came on to the US market in 1993. Hoechst Marion Roussel (now part of Aventis) introduced rifapentine in 1999.
Rifaximin is an oral rifamycin marketed in the US by Salix Pharmaceuticals that is poorly absorbed from the intestine. It has been used to treat hepatic encephalopathy and traveler's diarrhea.
Read more about this topic: Rifamycin