EC Microbiology

Pharmaceutical microbiology is an applied branch of microbiology, focused on study of micro-organisms associated with the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, primarily in minimizing the numbers in a process environment; ensuring that the finished product is sterile and excluding microorganisms and microbial byproducts like exotoxin and endotoxin from water and other starting materials is a key component of quality control in pharmaceutical manufacturing to ensure finished pharmaceutical products are sterile.

Other aspects of pharmaceutical microbiology include the research and development of anti-infective agents, the use of microorganisms to detect mutagenic and carcinogenic activity in prospective drugs, and the use of microorganisms in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products like insulin and human growth hormone.